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HISTORY 

OF 



Hendricks County 



INDIANA 



HER PEOPLE, INDUSTRIES AND INSTITUTIONS 



HON. JOHN V. HADLEY 

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF 



With Biographical Sketches of Representative Citizens and 
Genealogical Records of Many of the Old Families 



ILLUSTRATED 



1914 

B. F. BOWEN & CO., Inc. 

Indianapolis, Indiana 






DEDICATION 
This work is respectfully dedicated to 

THE PIONEERS 

long since departed. May the memory of those who laid down their burdens 

by the wayside ever be fragrant as the breath of summer 

flowers, for their toils and sacrifices have made 

Hendricks County a garden of 

sunshine and delisrhts. 



^53' 






O^^ 



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^? 



FOREWORD 



Hendricks county will celebrate its ninety-first birthday on December 
20, 1 9 14. The eighth General Assembly of Indiana met at Corydon on the 
first day of December, 1823, and created three counties before the close of 
the session, among them being Hendricks, the fifty-first county to be organ- 
ized in the state. The bill creating the county was introduced in the Senate 
on December 9th and, after passing both houses of the Legislature, was 
signed on December 20th by Governor William Hendricks, in whose honor 
the new county was named. The county had been a part of the so-called New 
Purchase which was secured from the Indians in the fall of 1818, and, pre- 
vious to its organization, had been under the civil and criminal jurisdiction 
of contiguous counties. 

It is difficult for the people of Hendricks county today to realize the 
wonderful changes which have come about since the organization of the 
county. In 1823, Indianapolis was a mere village, with a few log cabins and 
a population not to exceed two hundred. In fact, the whole population of 
the state did not exceed one hundred and fifty thousand and practically all 
of this was south of the present National Road. Not a railroad, canal or 
improved road of any kind was to be found within the limits of the state 
and all transportation was confined to the trails through the dense woods and 
to the streams and rivers flowing into the Ohio and Wabash. The farmer 
had only two implements, the plow and harrow, which were not operated by 
hand; he planted and harvested all his crops by hand and frequently had to 
grind his corn and wheat in the same way. He sheared his sheep and cut 
his flax, while his good wife took the raw product and made the family cloth- 
ing. The farmer was his own blacksmith, shoemaker, mason, carpenter and 
clothing manufacturer and frequently was his own doctor, dentist and lawyer. 
The division of labor as we know it now was practically unknown to the early 
settlers of this county. 

From a trackless wilderness Hendricks county has come to be a center 
of prosperity and civilization with millions of wealth, systems of railways 
and interurbans, schools and colleges, marvelous industries and immense agri- 
cultural productions. Conditions have changed so much since those early 



CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER VIII.— FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP 72 

Topography — Boundaries of the Township — Streams — Soil — Early Settle- 
ment and Events — First Election and Registered Voters — The Township in 
1914— Stilesville— An Up-to-Date Town. 

CHAPTER IX.— GUILFORD TOWNSHIP 75 

Situation — Drainage — Early Timber — Settlement — First Elections — Poll Book 
of First General Election — The Township at the Present Time — Plainfield — 
Incorporation as a Town — Re-incorporation — The Present Town — Lodges — 
Public Library — The Indiana Boys' School — Central Academy. 

CHAPTER X.— LIBERTY TOWNSHIP 82 

Location and Boundary — Topography — Drainage — Early Life — A Pioneer's 
View — Early Elections — Clayton — First Events and Present Status — Belle- 
ville — Cartersburg. 

CHAPTER XL— LINCOLN TOWNSHIP 88 

Topography — Early History — Present Status — Brownsburg — Incorporation 
and Subsequent History — Fraternities and Banks. 

CHAPTER XII.— MARION TOWNSHIP 91 

Boundaries — Soil — Early Settlement — First Election and List of Voters — 
The Township in 1914 — New Winchester. 

CHAPTER XIIL— MIDDLE TOWNSHIP 93 

Location — Early Timber — Settlement — Geographical Location and Area — 
Development of the Township — Pittsboro. 

CHAPTER XIV.— UNION TOWNSHIP 97 

Boundaries and Location — Early Settlement — First Elections — Poll Book for 
1852 — The Township at the Present Time — Lizton. 

CHAPTER XV.— WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP 100 

Topography — Drainage— Early Days — thirst Settlers — First Election — Avon. 

CHAPTER XVI.— POLITICAL HISTORY AND OFFICIAL ROSTER 104 

Presidential Campaigns and Elections — State Senators — Representatives — 
Circuit Judges — Common Pleas Judges — Probate Judges — Associate Judges — 
Prosecuting Attorneys — Common Pleas Prosecutors — Clerks — Treasurers — 
Auditors — Recorders — Surveyors — Coroners — Sheriffs. 

CHAPTER XVIL— MILITARY HISTORY 114 

The Civil War — Hendricks County's Loyal Response to Her Country's Call 
for Defenders — Press Comments — Muster Roll of Danville's First Company — 
One Hundred and Third Regiment — Number of Enlistments — Commissioned 
Officers — Bounty and Relief — Draft — Spanish-American War. 

CHAPTER XVIII.— HISTORY OF JOURNALISM 124 

The Early Newspaper — Beginnings in Hendricks Count}' — The Danville 
Advertiser — Hendricks County Union — Danville Union — Hendricks County 
Republican — Other Danville Papers — Hendricks County Gazette — Plaintield 
Papers — Friday Caller — North Salem Newspapers — Clayton Weekly Press — 
Brownsburg Record — Religious Publications — Pittsboro Sun. , 



CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER XIX.— THE MEDICAL PROFESSION 131 

First Doctors in Hendricks County — Early Physicians Important Factors 
in the Community Life — Hendricks County Medical Society — Physicians Be- 
fore 1890 — Present-day Physicians — First Physicians. 

CHAPTER XX.— CHURCH HISTORY 136 

Methodist Episcopal Churches — The Danville Academy — First Methodist 
Sunday School in Danville — Christian Churches — Presbyterian Societies — 
Baptist Churches — Friends — Catholic Church — Other Churches. 

CHAPTER XXI.— THE BENCH AND BAR 152 

The First Circuit Court — Early Cases — First Probate Court — Judges — The 
Bar — Hendricks County Bar Association. 

CHAPTER XXII.— EDUCATION 158 

Rapid Growth of Education in Hendricks County — First Schools in the 
County — Beginning of a New Era — Statistics for 1884 — The Common 
Schools Established — Teachers' Institutes — Township Trustee — County 
Superintendent — High School Statistics — Statistics for 1913 — Central Normal 
College — Belleville Academy. 

CHAPTER XXIII.— MISCELLANEOUS 168 

Agriculture — Farm Statistics — Roads — Early Purchases — Orphans' Home — 
Game Preserves — Population of Townships — Population of County by Dec- 
ades. 



HISTORICAL INDEX 



A 

Agriculture 168 

Ague 40 

Amo 67 

Area of Hendricks County 25 

Associate Judges 109 

Attorneys. First Resident 43 

Attorneys, Personal Mention 153 

Auditors, County 111 

Avon 101 

B 

Banks 60, 67, 68, 71, 

74, 78, 85, 90, 95, 99 

Baptist Churches 147 

Bar of Hendricks County 152 

Belleville 86 

Belleville Academy 166 

Bench and Bar . 152 

Birth, First in County 43 

Boulder Club 70 

Bounty and Relief 122 

British and French Efforts to Control 28 

British Colonial Policy 28 

British Withdrawal 35 

Brown Township 47 

Area 47 

Boundary 47 

First Election 47 

First Voters 48 

In 1914 48 

Settlement 47 

Soil 47 

Topography 47 

Voters, First 48 

Brownsburg 89 

Banks 90 

Beginning of 89 

First Named Harrisburg 89 

First Officers 89 

Incorporation 89 



Brownsburg — 

Location 89 

Lodges 90 

Officers, First 89 

Population 89 

Public Utilities 89 

C 

Campaigns, Political 104 

Cartersburg 87 

Catholic Church 151 

Cause of Immigration 39 

Center Township 49 

Boundaries 49 

Drainage 49 

Earliest Settlement 49 

First Election 49 

First Voters 49 

Improvements 50 

Location of 49 

Topography 49 

Central Academy 81 

Central Normal College 164 

Christian Churches 140 

Church History 136 

Circuit Court, First 152 

Circuit Judges 108 

Civil War Days 114 

Clark Expedition 29 

Clark, George Rogers 29 

Clay Township 65 

Election, First 65 

First Election 65 

First Poll Book 65 

First Settlement 65 

Natural Features 65 

Organization of 65 

Public Utilities 65 

Settlement 65 

Topography 65 

Voters, First 65 



HISTORICAL INDEX, 



Clayton 85 

Clerks of Court 110 

Coatesville 68 

Commissioned Officers 120 

Common Pleas Judges 109 

Common Pleas Prosecutors 110 

Common Schools 159 

Coroners 112 

County Auditors HI 

County Clerks 110 

County Commissioners, First 45 

County Organized 44 

County Recorders _ 111 

County Seat Selected 45 

County Superintendents 162 

County Surveyors 112 

County Treasurers 110 

Court, First Term of 45 

Court House, First 45 

Court House History 61 

Danville 50 

Banks 60 

Clubs 57 

Commercial Club 57 

Early Settlers 50 

Filing of Plat 45 

First Building 50 

First Things 51 

Incorporation 51 

Library 59 

Naming of 53 

Officers of 56 

Park 64 

Position of 25 

Postmasters 59 

Public Library 59 

Public Park 64 

Public Schools 61 

Public LTtilities 56 

Re-incorporation 51 

Reminiscence 53 

Schools 61 

Settlers, First 50 

Social Clubs 57 

Deed, First Land 44 

Disciples Churches 140 

Doctors 131 

Draft during Civil War 122 

Drainage 26 

Drift Formations 26 



t 

Early Explorers 27 

Early Physicians 134 

Early Purchases 170 

Early Schools 158 

Early Settlement of Hendricks Co. 39 

Early Trails 26 

Early Voting Qualifications 37 

Eel River Township 69 

Boulder Club 70 

Boundaries 69 

Drainage 69 

Early Settlement 69 

Election, First 70 

First Settlers 69 

First Voters 70 

Schools 70 

Settlement 69 

Streams 69 

Topography 69 

Transportation 70 

Voters, First 70 

Education 158 

Educational Statistics 163 

Election. First State 38 

Election of Delegates to Territorial 

Assembly 36 

Elections, Presidential 105 

Elevation of Land 25 

Enlistments for War 114 

Exclusion of Slavery 32 

Explorations, Early 27 

F 

Fallen Timbers, Battle of 34 

Farm Products 168 

Farm Statistics 168 

First Birth in County 43 

First Circuit Court 152 

First County Commissioners 45 

First Court House 45, 61 

First Grand Jury 152 

First Improvements 43 

First Indian Inhabitants 27 

First Land Deed 44 

First Marriage License 43 

First Mill 43 

First Newspaper in Indiana 37 

First Newspaper in Hendricks Co. — 124 



HISTORICAL INDEX. 



First Physicians 135 

First Probate Court 153 

First Resident Attorneys 43 

First School Houses 43 

First Schools in County 158 

First Settlement 42 

First State Election 38 

First Term of Court 45 

First Territorial Judicial Districts-. 57 

Fort Wayne, Origin of 35 

Franklin Township 72 

Drainage 72 

Early Events 72 

Early Settlement 72 

Election, First 73 

First Election 73 

First Settler 72 

First Voters 73 

Location 72 

Organization 72 

Politics 73 

Poll Book, First 73 

Settlement 72 

Topography 72 

Voters, First 73 

Fraternal Orders 63, 67, 68, 71, 74, 

78, 86, 87, 90, 95 

Free and Accepted Masons 63, 68, 71, 

74, 78, 86, 87, 90, 95 
French and British Efforts to Control 28 
French Settlements in Northwest 

Territory 28 

Friends 149 



Game Preserves 170 

Geology 26 

Glacial Drift 26 

Government Surveys 41 

Grand Army of the Republic 71, 74 

79, 90, 95 

Grand Jury, First 152 

Greenville Treaty 35 

Guilford Township 75 

Drainage 75 

Elections, First 76 

First Elections 76 

First Settlers 75 

First Voters 76 



Guilford Township — 

Friends Society 75 

Pol! Book. First 76 

Settlement 75 

Situation 75 

Streams 75 

Timber 75 

Topography 75 

Voters. First 76 

H 

Hadley 67 

Flarmar's Expedition 33 

Harrisburg 89 

Harrison, Governor William H. 36 

Hendricks County, Area 25 

Hendricks County Bar Association 156 

Hendricks County, Boundaries 25 

Hendricks County, Early Settlement 39 

Hendricks County Lawyers 152 

Hendricks County, Location 25 

Hendricks County Medical Society 132 
Hendricks County, Organization of 44 
High School Statistics 162 

I 

Immigration, Cause of 39 

Improved Order of Red Men 

64. 79, 90. 99 

Improvements, First 43 

Indian Confederation 28 

Indian Treaties 41 

Indiana Boys' School 79 

Indiana Made a State 38 

Indiana Territory Divided 37 

Indiana Territory Organized 36 

Indians 27 

Indians. Removal of 41 

J 

Jail 62 

Journalism 124 

Judges, Associate 109 

Judges, Circuit 108 

Judges, Common Pleas 109 

Judges, Probate 109 



HISTORICAL INDEX. 



K 

Knights of Pythias 63, 68, 71, 78, 

90, 99 

L 

Land Cessions 41 

Land Elevation 25 

Last Territorial Legislature 38 

Legislature, Last Territorial 38 

Libraries 59, 79, 166 

Liberty Township 82 

Area 82 

Boundaries 82 

Early Life 82 

Elections, Early 84 

First Elections 84 

First Events 82 

First Settlement 82 

First Voters 84 

Pioneer's View, A 83 

Settlement 82 

Topography 82 

Voters, First _^ 84 

Lincoln Township 88 

Agriculture 89 

Boundaries 88 

Early History 88 

First Settler 88 

History, Early 88 

Improvements 89 

Location 88 

Modern Improvements 89 

Politics 88 

Settler, First 88 

Lizton 98 

Location of Hendricks County 25 

Lutheran Church 151 

M 

Magnetic Springs 87 

Marion Township 91 

Boundaries : 91 

Early Settlement 91 

Election, First 91 

First Voters 91 

First Election 91 

Politics 91 

Settlement 91 

Soil 91 



Marion Township — 

Topography 91 

Voters, First 91 

Marriage License, First 43 

Masonic Order 63, 68, 71, 74, 78, 

86, 87. 90. 95 

Medical History 131 

Methodist Episcopal Churches 136 

Middle Township 93 

Boundaries 39 

Development 94 

First Settler 93 

Location 93 

Organization of 94 

Settlement 93 

Timber 93 

Topography 93 

Military History 114 

Mill, First 43 

Miscellaneous Items 168 

N 

National Policies 28 

National Road, Building of 43 

Natural Features 25 

Newspaper, First in Indiana 37 

Newspapers 124 

New Winchester 92 

North Salem 71 

Northwest Government 31 

O 

Odd Fellows 63, 67, 68, 71, 74, 

78, 86, 90 
Officers in Civil 'War 120 

One Hundred Third Regiment 118 

Ordinance of 1787 32, 36 

Organization of County 44 

Organization of Indiana Territory — 36 

Organization of State in 1816 38 

Orphans' Home 170 



Parke, Benjamin 37 

Pecksburg 66 

Physicians 131 

Pioneer Conditions 40 

Pioneer Settlers 39 



HISTORICAL INDEX. 



Pioneer's View, A 83 

Pittsboro 94 

Plaintield 11 

Bank 78 

Boys' School 79 

Central Academy 81 

Election, First 11 

First Election 11 

First Voters 11 

Incorporation 11 

Indiana Boys' School 79 

Library 79 

Lodges 78 

Platting of 11 

Public Library 79 

Public Utilities 78 

Re-incorporation 11 

Utilities 78 

Voters, First 11 

Political History 104 

Population of County 171 

Population of Indiana in 1810 Zl 

Population of Townships 171 

Position of Danville 25 

Post Vincennes 30 

Presbyterian Churches 143 

Present Attorneys 156 

Present Court House 62 

Present-day Physicians 134 

Presidential Campaigns 104 

Probate Court, First 153 

Probate Judges 109 

Prosecuting Attorneys 109 

Prosecutors, Common Pleas 110 



R 



Recorders, County 111 

Red Men 64, 79, 90, 99 

Related State History 27 

Relief for Soldiers' Families 122 

Religious History 136 

Religious Publications 129 

Removal of Indians 41 

Reno 67 

Representatives 107 

Roads 168 



S 

St. Clair's Expedition 34 

School Houses, First 43 

School Statistics 163 

Schools 158 

Second Court House 61 

Secret Societies 63, 67, 68, 71, 74, 78, 

86, 87, 90, 95 

Selection of County Seat 45 

Senators, State 107 

Settlement in 1824 43 

Settlement, the First 42 

Settlers, Pioneer 39 

Sheriffs 113 

Slavery Excluded 32 

Spanish-American War 122 

Springs, Magnetic 87 

State Election, First 38 

State Organization in 1816 38 

State Senators 107 

Statistics 170 

Stilesville IZ 

Streams 26 

Surveyors, County 112 

Surveys 41 

Swamps 40 

T 

Teachers' Institute 160 

Terre Haute Trail 42 

Territorial Capital at Vincennes 36 

Territorial Legislature, Last 38 

Township Institutes 160 

Township Trustees 160 

Townships Created 45 

Trails, Early 26 

Treasurers, County 110 

Treaty with the Indians 35 

Trustees, Township 160 

U 

Union Township 97 

Boundaries 97 

Elections, First 98 

First Elections 98 

First Settlement 97 



HISTORICAL INDEX. 



Union Township — 

First Voters 98 

Location 97 

Settlement 97 

Topography 97 

Voters, First 98 

V 

Vinccnnes. Capture of 30 

Vincennes. the Territorial Capital-- 36 

W 

War Excitement 114 

Washington Township 100 

Boundaries 100 



Washington Township — 

Drainage 100 

Early Days 100 

Election, First 101 

First Election 101 

First Settlement 100 

First Voters 101 

Location 100 

Organization 100 

Settlement 100 

Streams 100 

Timber 100 

Topography 100 

Voters, First 101 

Water-sheds 25 

Wayne's Expedition 35 



BIOGRAPHICAL INDEX 



A 

Adams, John A. 364 

Adams, Thad S. 344 

Adams, Thomas J. 276 

Adams, Una D. 271 

Ader, John W 238 

Airhart, Joseph H. 362 

Almond, John H. 841 

Anderson, Benjamin W. 743 

Anderson, Eli H. 838 

Applebay, William H. 528 

Arbuckle. Elmer B. 823 

Armstrong, Louis W., M. D 288 

Arnold, William H. 691 

Ayers, J. Wesley 609 

B 

Bailey, Marion 768 

Barber, Samuel 448 

Barlow, James M. 561 

Barlow, Harrison S. 387 

Barlow^ Henry D 546 

Barnes, Wilson D. 722 

Barnett, Col. John T. 842 

Bayliss, Robert 324 

Beaman, Albert W. 575 

Beaman, William E. 580 

Beeler, Frederick V. 534 

Bell, Robert 491 

Benbow, Charles F. 250 

Benson, Rev. Walter M. 806 

Blair, E. E. 278 

Blessing, Edgar M. 218 

Bly, A. Emmett 411 

Bowman, William R. 685 

Brady, Wesley 214 

Bridges, A. P. W., M. D 230 

Brill, George W. 232 

Brill, Jonah S. 598 



Brown, John F. 502 

Brownsburg State Bank 511 

Bunten. John H. 274 

Bunten, John H., Jr. 440 

Burgan, Jacob O. 477 

C 

Campbell, Leander M. 454" 

Carter, David W. 319 

Carter, Eleazar B. 778 

Carter, Joseph S. 488 

Carter, Mordecai 458 

Chandler, William 332 

Christie, Robert O. 464 

Clark, William P. 559 

Clay, Charles C. 756 

Clay, John J. C. 254 

Clay, Joseph F. 714 

Clements, David A. 683 

Cockerel!, Ora 516 

Cofer, Thomas J. 296 

Cook, Horace G. 798 

Cooper, Ernest, M. D. 413 

Cosner, William 432 

Cox, Alfred 800 

Cox, Henry S. 408 

Creech, Fred 233 

Cummings, Charles A. 353 

D 

Darnell, James L. 400 

Daugherty, James E. 687 

Davenport. George E. 788 

Davidson, William R. 299 

Davis, Arthur M. 820 

Davis. Emmett T. 555 

Davis, George B. 762 

Davis, Herschel E. 378 

Davis, Quincy A. 260 



BIOGRAPHICAL INDEX. 



Davis, Smith K. 509 

Davis, Thomas C. 812 

Dickerson, William S. 664 

Dodds, James S. 818 

Dooley, James B. 653 

Dorman, Richard T. 754 

Downard, Canady H. 749 

Downard, James A. 180 

Duffey, Luke W. J 376 

Duckworth, John S. 198 

Dugan, John J. 469 

Duncan, Charles P. 699 

Duncan, Earl 830 

Durham, John 792 

E 

Eaton, Grandison 764 

Eaton, Leon 391 

Edmondson, Benjamin G. 313 

Edmondson, Robert A. 436 

Edmonson, Columbus F. 438 

Edwards, Charles E. 190 

Edwards, Solomon D. 544 

Elmore, William S. 700 

Elrod, Samuel H. 775 

English, John E. 752 

Ensminger, Melville C. 697 

Ensminger, Samuel B. 291 

F 

Figg, Archibald A. 289 

Figg, John W. 531 

Fleece, Joseph B. 209 

Foudray, Edgar E. 339 

Funkhouser, Lucian G. 367 

Fuson, Elmer L. 389 

G 

Garner, Andrew S. 395 

Garner, John R. 638 

Garner, Rollie 341 

Garrison, Joel B. 401 

Gibbs, John A. 342 

Gibbs, William W. 385 

Gill, William I. 269 

Glidewell, Marshall S. 321 

Glover, Alfred R. 306 



Gore, William W. 780 

Gossett, Nathaniel C. 573 

Gowin, Oliver S. 673 

Greely, Peter 651 

Greene, Rev. Joseph N. 602 

Grimes, J. Harold, M. D. 384 

Gulley, Otis E. 224 

Gunn, John L. 576 

H 

Hackleman, Pleasant A. 795 

Hadley, Edom R. 204 

Hadley, John V. 173 

Hadley, Jonathan 173 

Hadley, Milton M. 204 

Hadley, Oscar 568 

Hadley, R. M. 403 

Hall, Francis H. 712 

Hall, John H. 434 

Hamrick, Carey M 682 

Hanna, Horace L. 236 

Hardin, James F. 505 

Hardwick, Warren 669 

Hargrave, Joseph N. 244 

Harlan, Enoch 252 

Harlan, Guy 620 

Harper, Melvin 802 

Harper, Miss Melvina 802 

Harper, William F 802 

Harris, Nicodemis 747 

Harrison, Francis M. 726 

Harvey, Col. George C. 616 

Harvey, Rev. Robert N. 423 

Haulk, Calvin T. 643 

Hays, Fred A. 666 

Hazlewood, Daniel S. 828 

Herring, Phillip B. 761 

Hession, Martin 662 

Hession, Michael F. 814 

Higgins, David A. 221 

Higgins, William T. 636 

Hill, Frank E. 784 

Hoadley, W. J., M. D. 256 

Hodson, Elmer 462 

Hogate, Julian D 264 

Hollaway, John W. 326 

Hollingsworth. William A. 302 

Homan, Joseph B. 272 

Hopkins, Murat W. 641 



BIOGRAPHICAL INDEX. 



Hornaday, Charles P. 213 

Hufford, Gideon F. 350 

Humston, James E. 240 

Hunt, Cleo L. 772 

Hunt, Henry 738 

Hunt, John W. 782 

Hunt, Perry 392 

Hunt, William 618 

Hunter, Millard T. 770 

Huron, Seth T. 245 

J 

Jessup, Joel 584 

Johnson, Albert 730 

Johnson, Frank 604 

Johnson, Lorenzo D. 734 

Johnson, Martin L. 600 

Jones, Daniel M. 572 

Jordan. Charles H. 514 

Junken, George D. 705 

K 

Keeney, George A. 194 

Kendall, Xathan H. 406 

Kersey, Amos 621 

Kesler, Charles E. 703 

King, Will A. 208 

Kinnan, Thomas B. 541 

Kinney, Thomas 493 

Kocher, Charles W. 317 

Kurtz, Charles E. 660 

Kurtz, Edwin M 248 

Kurtz, Jacob L. 480 

L 

Laird, John W. . 336 

Lakin, William N. 825 

Lamb, Joseph 790 

Lawler, James M. 557 

Leach, John E. 310 

Leach, William W. 629 

Leak, James M. 707 

Leak, James T. 736 

Leak, John A. 526 

Leak, Roscoe R. 298 

Lee. John T. 485 

Lewis, William D. 578 



Lineinger. Alfred S. 368 

Lockhart, Jacob 496 

Lockhart, James N. 773 

Long, Patrick M. 358 

Lowe, Jonathan 524 

Mc 

McClelland, William R. 632 

McCormick, Amos D. 646 

McCoun, James L. 750 

McCoun, Samuel C. 695 

McHaffie, George W. 330 

M 

Mabe, Sylvanus 202 

Macomber, George 352 

Mahan, M. S. 196 

Martin, Charles F. 804 

Martin, Theodore T. 560 

Masten, Cyrus H. 520 

Masten, Jesse 610 

Masten, Lincoln A. 258 

Mattern, John Q. A. 558 

Miles, John R. 834 

Milhon, Ethor V. 716 

Mills, Charles W. 837 

Mills. William A. 547 

Mitchell, Amos L. 442 

Mitchell, Thomas H. 447 

Montgomery, George 670 

Montgomery, James 614 

Montgomery, Tyra 672 

Mora.n, John P. 360 

Moran, Thomas 508 

Morgan, Joseph C. 597 

Murphy. Elbert M. 475 

N 

Nash, Edward F. 404 

Nash, Thomas J. 382 

Nash, William J. Z7i 

Neal, Charles W. 606 

Neal, Tavner 188 

Newby, Eliel 539 

Newlin. Joel 554 

Nichols, William H. 242 

Noland, Stephen D. 266 



BIOGRAPHICAL INDEX. 



O 

O'Brien, Bertrand M., M. D 675 

Ogden, James M. 380 

Ogden, Jesse S. 426 

O'Neal, Jacob E. 416 

Orf, George 479 

Osborn. Alpheus 536 

Osborne, William C. 552 

Owen, Eleazar B. 285 

Owen. J. A. 285 

Owen, Leslie D. 287 

Owen, Oliver P. 793 

P 

Page, Jacob J. 312 

Page, Jeremiah J. 282 

Page, William F. 808 

Parker, Robert E. 702 

Pattison, George T. 460 

Pearson, Silas M. 262 

Pebworth, Aubrey C, M. D. 631 

Pennington, William 397 

Phillips, James W. 371 

Phillips, John N. 207 

Phillips. Jonathan F. 456 

Plummer, Richard D. 595 

Portwood, John L. 840 

Prebster, Cecil F. 346 

Q 
Ouinn. William W. 728 

R 

Ragan, John S., M. D. 741 

Ragland, Edward V. 227 

Raidabaugh, Rev. Peter W. 688 

Ramsey, Alexander 740 

Reed, Charles R. 832 

Reeve, Horace 542 

Relander, Charles 634 

Reynolds, D. Monroe, M. D. 430 

Rice, John U. 356 

Roark, Charles 533 

Robards, Everett R. 192 

Robbins, William H. 809 

Rodney, Henry C. 677 

Rose, Thomas C. 293 



Rose, William M. 640 

Ross, Alva A. 538 

Ross, Eli H. •_ 530 

Royer, E. Ray 320 

Rudd, Gabriel N. 504 

Ruse, James W. 500 

Rushton, W. A. 589 

Rynerson, John C. 450 

S 

Sanders, Harry E. 720 

Sandusky, Thomas J. 581 

Sawyer, E. W. - 608 

Sawyer, William W. 419 

Scearce, George W. 200 

Sears, Herbert C. 822 

Sellars, Clark H. 767 

Shields, Charles E. T24 

Shields, William H. 512 

Shirley, Edgar W. 182 

Shirley, Fred G. 627 

Short, Mark M. 444 

Showalter, John A. 225 

Smith, Elmer 522 

Smith, John M. 786 

Smith. Sanders 417 

Soper, Fred B. 216 

Spears, Arthur 487 

Stafford, James C. 591 

Stevenson, John F. 482 

Stevenson, William FI. 719 

Steward, Cunning H. 567 

Storm, Hiram T. 234 

Stout. Calvin 817 

T 

Tansel. Charles 365 

Tharp, Joshua S. 592 

Thomas, Clarkson B. 583 

Thomas, Erasmus D. 550 

Tinder. John W. 304 

Trotter. John W. 184 

Trotter, Oliver W. 811 

Trotter, Silas B. 223 

Trotter, William W. 220 

Tucker. Dandridge 656 

Tucker, David L. 658 

Tucker. John 549 

Tucker. Xathan A. 650 



EIOGRAPHICAl- INDKX. 



u 



Underwood, Marshal! 315 

Underwood, Obed ^ 648 

V 

Vestal, John E. 484 

Vestal, William B. 835 

W 

Walker, John C. 624 

Walsh, John 495 

Walter, Joseph G. 518 

Warner, Fred E. 328 

Warren, Calvin W. 349 

Warrick, Calvin 710 

W^aters, Samuel S. 757 

Watson, Virgil S. 471 



Weaver, Amos C. 586 

Weaver, Chester A. 709 

Webb, Albert L. 498 

Wehr, M. H. 323 

West, John A. 612 

Westertield, Robert 679 

Whicker, Allen 472 

Whicker, Clarence C. 466 

Whicker, Franz F. 474 

White, Bert A. -759 

White, Charles A., M. D. 280 

Whyte, John W. 177 

Williams, Dennis B. 333 

Wills, David B. 452 

Wilson, Joseph L. 744 

Wise, George W. 694 

Wiseheart, Oscar H., M. D. 815 

Woody, Hugh J. 565 

Worrell, Toliver 746 

Wright, Frederick N., M. D. 295 



HISTORICAL 



CHAPTER I. 

GEOLOGY AND TOPOGRAPHY OF HENDRICKS COUNTY. 

Hendriclcs county has a central position in the state, the county seat 
being nearly in the exact center from north to south and twenty miles west 
of the center on an east and west line. Its geographical position is between 
parallels 39 and 40 degrees north latitude and meridians 86 and 87 west longi- 
tude. The exact position of Danville is 39 degrees 40 minutes north latitude 
and 86 degrees 30 minutes west longitude. In extent, the county was in- 
tended to be twenty miles square, but the surveyors' correction line, which 
passes through the northern part of the county, destroys its cjuadrilateral 
shape, and makes it more than half a mile wider at the north than the south. 
However, owing to irregularities in the surveys, which were caused Iiy the 
passage through the county of both the second principal meridian and a cor- 
rection line of the government surveys, the county averaged just twenty miles 
square until the year 1868, when a strip two miles in width, extending from 
the meridian line west to Mill creek and containing twenty square miles, was 
added to the county from Morgan county, which makes the area of the county 
four hundred and twenty square miles. The county is bounded on the north 
by Boone county, on the east by Marion county, on the south by Morgan 
county and on the west by the counties of Putnam and Montgomery. 

The general elevation of the surface of Hendricks county is much higher 
than the surrounding country, except portions of Boone and Putnam counties. 
Passing through the county from south to north, from near Clayton to 
Lebanon, in Boone county, is a natural water-shed, which divides the waters 
of Eel river and Sugar creek from the waters of White river, and at a point 
three miles northwest of Danville, at Mount Pleasant church, it attains an 
elevation of more than one thousand feet. 

The general surface of the county is level or gently undulating. Though 
the streams in many places have eroded deep, narrow valleys, there are but 
few acres in the county which, on this account, cannot be cultivated and not 
one which cannot be made useful for grazing purposes. 



26 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

The streams which make the natural drainage of Hendricks county are 
the White Licks. Big, Little, East and West forks. Abner's creek, Mill creek, 
School branch and Eel river. The east and north parts of the county are 
drained by the White Licks, the southwest by Mill creek and the northwest by 
Eel river. Owing to the ele\ati()n of the land. l)ut few springs are found in 
the count^■, thougli pure water in great abundance is obtained at no great 
depth ])y digging through sand and clay. Originally the county was covered 
by a dense forest, composed of every variety of timber, trees and under- 
growth found in this latitude, with an extraordinary amoimt of the more 
valuable kinds, popular, walnut and the oaks. After the Indians were gone 
and the annual burning of the woods ceased, there grew up a dense under- 
grow'th, and the highways of the early settlers consisted of narrow trails 
through the woods, the thickness of \\hich may be illustrated by the state- 
ment of a pioneer that when driving cattle from place to place they often 
tied handspikes across their foreheads, which prcA-ented them from leaving" 
the trail. 

In all parts of the county the soil is productive for cereals, grasses and 
fruits. 

GEOLOGY. 

No official survey has ever been made of Hendricks county until the 
spring of IQ14, but the publication of this report, having been delayed by the 
United States government printing department, will not be issued in time 
for this work. However, good information is at hand. 

The entire county is covered by a glacial drift formation from ten to 
three hundred feet in depth. This formation is compose.d of sand, clay and 
calcareous substances, boulders, fragments of crystalline rocks, remains of 
ancient animals and vegetable life and extensive moraines of gravel. 

The drift in Hendricks county rests upon a stratum of Devonian sand- 
stone, known to geologists as the Marshall or knob sandstone. It is soft, 
brittle and shaly and unfit for economic uses. This sandstone ceases to ap- 
pear near the eastern line of the county and it is probable that in the south- 
east corner of the county, the black slate of the Flamilton group, which under- 
lies the Marshall sandstone, may be found. Near the western border of the 
county sub-carboniferous limestone overlaps the sandstone. The drift forma- 
tion is composed of a disintegration and decomposition of- almost everv 
variety of rocks, soils, the remains of animal and vegetable life and various 
mineral elements. 



CHAPTER II. 



RELATED STATE HISTOKY. 



EARLY EXPLORERS. 

As an introduction to the history of Hendricks county it is fitting thai a 
JDrief survey of the history of the state of Indiana should be given, not for 
the purpose of teaching the reader the course of events which make up Hoosier 
history, but for the subordinate purpose of building a foundation for the 
county history, a preparatory word to lead the reader to a better understand- 
ing of this work. 

Not until the years 1670-2 did the first white travelers venture so far 
into the great Northwest as Indiana or Lake Michigan. Claude Dablon 
and Claude Allouez, two intrepid Frenchmen, then visited what is now the 
eastern part of Wisconsin, the northeastern portion of Illinois, and probably 
the portion of this state north of the Kankakee river. In the year following 
M. Joliet, an agent of the French colonial government,, and James ]\Iarquette, 
a missionary stationed at iMackinaw, explored the country around Green bay, 
and along Fox and \A'isconsin rivers as far westward as the ^Mississippi river, 
the banks of which tliey reached on June 17, 1673. They descended this 
river a short distance and returned by way of the Illinois river. At a village 
among the Illinois Indians, ^larquette and his followers were received with 
friendly hospitality and made guests at a great feast of hominy, fish, dog 
meat and roast buffalo. In 1682 LaSalle explored the West, but it is not 
known certainly whether or not he entered the territory now embraced in 
Indiana. He took possession, however, of the whole Mississippi region in 
the name of France, and. in honor of the king, he named it Louisiana. 
Spain at the same time claimed the region around the Gulf of Mexico. 
Consecjuenth' the two nations clashed. 

FIRST INDLAN INHABITANTS. 

At this time the country now comprising the state of Indiana was held 
by the Miami confederacy of Indians, the Miamis proper, originally the 



28 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Twightwees, being the eastern and most powerful tribe. Their villages were 
few and scattering. These Indian settlements were occasionally visited by- 
Christian missionaries, fur traders and adventurers, but no permanent settle- 
ment was risked by the whites. The Five Nations farther to the east, in the 
New England states, comprised the Mohawks, Oneidas, Cayugas, Onondagas 
and Senecas. In 1677 the number of warriors in this confederation was two 
thousand one hundred and fifty. About 1711 the Tuscaroras retired from 
Carolina and joined the Iroquois, and the organization then became known as 
the Six Nations. In 1689 hostilities broke out between the Indian tribes and 
the French colonists of Canada, and the following series of wars served to 
check the purpose of Louis XIV and to retard the planting of French colonies 
in the Mississippi valley. Missionary efforts, however, continued with more 
failure than success, the Jesuits allying themselves with the Indians in habits 
and customs, even encouraging inter-marriage between them and their white 
followers. 

NATIONAL POLICIES. 

The English, who were envious of the French, resorted to every method 
to extend their territory w^estward. Both nations secured aid from various 
Indian tribes, and a bloody and merciless warfare continued for many years. 
France continued in her effort to connect the Canadian country with the 
gulf of Mexico by a chain of trading posts and colonies, which further in- 
creased the jealousy of England and really laid the foundation for the French 
and Indian w^ar, which terminated in the treaty of 1763 at Paris, and by W'hich 
France ceded to Great Britain all of North America east of the Mississippi 
river, except New Orleans and some contiguous territory. The British 
policy, after getting control of the Indian territory, was still unfavorable to 
its growth in population. In 1765 the number of French families wnthin the 
limits of the Northwestern territory did not exceed six hundred. These were 
in settlements around Detroit, along the Wabash river, and in the neighborT 
hood of Fort Chartres. Cahokia and Kaskaskia on the Mississippi river. Of 
these families, eighty-five resided at Post Vincennes, fourteen at Fort Ouiate- 
non on the Wabash and in the neighborhood of the confluence of the St. Mary 
and St. Joseph rivers. The colonial policy of the British government opposed 
any measures which might strengthen the settlements in the interior of this 
country, lest they become self-supporting" and independent of the mother 
country. Thomas JefYerson, the wise statesman and governor of Virginia, 
saw from the first that actual occupation of western lands w-as the only way to 
keep them out of the hands of foreigners and Indians. Accordingly he 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 29 

engaged a corps of scientific men and sent them to the Mississippi river to 
ascertain the point on that stream intersected by latitude thirty-six degrees 
thirty minutes and to measure its distance north to the Ohio. In that quarter 
he intrusted the mihtary operations to General Clark, with instructions to select 
a strong position near the named point and erect a fort and garrison the same 
for protecting the settlers, and then to extend his conquest toward the great 
lakes on the north. Conforming to his instructions. General Clark erected Fort 
Jefferson on the Mississippi, a few miles above the southern limit. The 
result of these operations was the addition to A^irginia of the vast Northwest 
territory. The fact that a chain of forts was established by the Americans 
in this region convinced the British commissioners that we had entitled our- 
selves to the land. During this time minor events were transpiring outside 
the territory in question which later promoted the settlement in wdiat is now 
known as Indiana. 

THE GEORGE ROGERS CLARK EXPEDITION. 

George Rogers Clark, a resident of Kentucky, but a native of Virginia, 
some time in the spring of 1776 formulated a scheme of more rapid settle- 
ment in the Northwest territory. That part of Kentucky was occupied by 
Henderson and Company, who pretended to own the land and set a high price 
on the same. Clark doubted the validity of their claim, and wished to make 
a test of it, and adjust the control of the country so that settlements might be 
fostered. He called a meeting of the citizens at Harrodstown. to assemble 
June 6, 1776, and consider the claims of the company, and consult with refer- 
ence to the interests of the country. 

This meeting was held on the day appointed and delegates elected to 
confer with the state of Virginia as to the propriety of attaching the new 
country as a county to that state. Many causes prevented a consummation 
of this object until the year 1778: Virginia was favorable to the enterprise, 
but would not take action as a state. Governor Henry and a few others, 
however, assisted Colonel Clark all they could. Clark organized an expedi- 
tion and took in stores at Pittsburgh and AMieeling, and proceeded down the 
Ohio to the falls, where he built some light fortifications. 

Clark's original plan was to take Vincennes, but he changed it on account 
of an erroneous idea as to the strength of the garrison at that place. He 
left the Falls of the Ohio on June 24, 1878. and, with one hundred and fiftv- 
three men, floated down the Ohio, reaching the mouth of the Tennessee river 
four davs later. He then landed his men and marched them to Kaskaskia, 



30 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

reaching the r|uaint Httle French village on the night of July 4th. Clark had 
no difficultv in winning the French inhabitants to the American cause and a 
few days later the people of Cahokia also took the oath of allegiance to the 
Americans. Clark now had Kaskaskia and Cahokia and only Vincennes re- 
mained to be secured. Clark wanted some of the people of Kaskaskia to go to 
Vincennes and win over the inhal)itants of the village and finally Doctor 
La font and blather (jil)ault, a Catholic priest who had charge of the Wabash 
mission, undertook the task. On July 14, 1778, these two emissaries left 
Kaskaskia with a small retinue and within a few days were at Vincennes. 
Two davs after their arrival they had won the people to the American cause 
and had the deep satisfaction of gathering all of the French inhabitants in 
the church, where they took the oath of allegiance. An officer was elected ; 
the fort was garrisoned ; and for the first time an American flag was raised on 
Indiana soil. 

Father Gil)ault returned to Kaskaskia about the first of August and 
brought the glad news to Clark, but just at this time a new trouble was 
threatening Clark. His men were leaving him because their enlistment had 
expired and, since he had no authority to extend it, he was in grave danger 
of losing the larger part of his force. But Clark was not to be dismayed. 
He made some liberal promises and finally succeeded in getting one hundred 
of them to re-enlist, filling the vacancies with French volunteers. Clark now 
placed Capt. Leonard Helm in command of Vincennes and made him superin- 
tendent of Indian affairs on the \\'abash. As the summer and fall of 1778 
wore away the British were planning to capture Vincennes and late in the fall 
Gen. Henry Hamilton moved down the Wabash with a force of thirty regulars, 
fifty Canadian volunteers and four hundred Indians. He reached Vincennes 
December 15th and found Captain Helm and one other man in the fort. 
Captain Helm stood by a loaded cannon with a lighted match in his hand as 
the envoys of General Hamilton approached the fort and shouted out that no 
one should enter the fort until he knew what terms would be given. General 
Hamilton assured him that he could march out with all the honors of war — 
and Vincennes became a British post. 

On January 29, 1779. Clark, who was still at Kaskaskia, heard of the fall 
of X'incennes and determined to retake the place. He gathered together about 
one hundred and seventy men, and on February 5th started from Kaskaskia, 
crossing the stream of the same name. The weather was wet and the low- 
lands covered with water. He had to subsist on such game as he could kill 
en route. The men underwent great privations, wading through acres of 
water to their hips, and suffering intensely with the cold. However, Colonel 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 3 1 

Clark shared all of the hardships of the men and asked nothing of them 
which he would not undergo himself. They reached the little Wabash on 
the 13th, and two days were occupied in crossing the swollen stream. They 
found the roads no better, but marched down and reached the Embarrass 
on the 17th of the month. The next two days were consumed in attempting 
to cross the angry stream. Finally canoes were constructed and the entire 
force crossed the main stream, and then found the lowlands entirely under 
water and ice which had formed recently. His men refused to proceed. 
All of Clark's persuasions had no effect upon the half starved men. In one 
company was a small drummer-boy and also a sergeant who stood six feet 
and two inches high. Clark ordered him, the sergeant, to mount the boy 
on his shoulders and plunge into the water. He did so, and the small drum- 
mer beat the charge from his position, while Clark, sword in hand, followed. 
This maneuver was electrical, and the men, with a cheer, followed their 
leader. On arriving within two miles of the fort Clark halted his men and 
sent in a letter demanding surrender, to which he received no reply. He next 
ordered Lieutenant Bayley. with fourteen men, to advance and fire on the 
fort, while the main body of men moved in another direction and took po- 
session of the strongest portion of tlie town. Clark then demanded Hamil- 
ton's immediate surrender, on penalty of being treated as a murderer. Hamil- 
ton refused indignantly. Fighting began and continued for over an hour, 
when Hamilton proposed a three days' truce. Clark, characteristically, sent 
word that nothing but unconditional surrender was satisfactory. In less than 
an hour the surrender was dictated by General Clark. This was on February 
24, 1779. 

Of this expedition, of its results, of its importance, as well as of the 
skill and bravery of those engaged, a volume could well be written. The 
expedition has never been surpassed in modern warfare, when we consider 
that by it the whole territory now included in Ohio. Indiana. Illinois. Michigan. 
Wisconsin and a part of Minnesota was added to the Union, and so admitted 
by the British commissioners in the treaty of peace in 1783. Clark rein- 
stated Captain Helm in C(3mmand at A^incennes, with instruction to subdue 
the marauding Indians, wbiich he did. and soon comparative quiet prevailed 
on Indiana soil. The whole credit of this conquest belongs to Colonel Clark 
and Francis V^igo. 



1^2 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

NORTHWEST GOVERNMENT. 

By the conquest of Colonel Clark, Indiana came within the territory be- 
longing to Virginia. In January, 1783, the General Assembly of the Old 
Dominion resolved to cede this territory to the genei-al government of the 
United States. The proposition made by Virginia was accepted by the gov- 
ernment and the transfer made early in 1784. The terms were that Virginia 
was to be reimbursed for all expenses incurred in exploring and protecting 
settlers in the territory; also that one hundred and fifty thousand acres of 
land should be granted to the soldiers who. with Colonel Clark, had made 
the famous expedition. After all these matters had been attended to, in the 
spring of 1784, the matter of governing this section of the west was referred 
to a committee of Messrs. Jefferson, of Virginia, Chase, of Maryland, and 
Howell, of Rhode Island, which committee, among other things, reported an 
ordinance prohibiting slavery in the territory after 1800, but this article of 
the ordinance was rejected. The Ordinance of 1784 was passed April 23d 
and remained the fundamental law of the Northwest territory until July 13, 
1787. The ordinance of 1787 has an interesting history. Much controversy 
has been indulged in as to who is really entitled to the credit of framing it. 
The honor was held by several men jointly, among them being Nathan Dane, 
Rufus King, Timothy Pickering, Thomas Jefferson and Manasseh Cutler. 
Mr. Jefferson had vainly tried to secure a system of government for the 
Northwest territory excluding slavery therefrom. The South, however, in- 
variably voted him down. 

In July, 1787, an organizing act without the slavery clause was pending, 
which was supposed to secure its passage. Congress went into session in 
New York City. July 5th, Dr. Manasseh Cutler, of Massachusetts, came to 
New York in the interests of some land or speculators in the Northwest 
territory. He was a courtly gentleman of the old-school type and had won 
the confidence of the Southern leaders. He wished to purchase five million, 
five hundred thousand acres of land in the new territory. Jefferson and his 
administration desired to make a record on the reduction of the public debt, 
and this was a rare opportunity. Massachusetts' representatives could not 
vote against Cutler's scheme, as many of their constituents were interested in 
the measure personally; Southern members were almost committed. Thus, 
Cutler held the key to the situation, and dictated terms, which were as 
follows : 

I. The exclusion of slavery from the territory forever. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 33 

2. Providing one thirty-sixth of all lands for public schools. 

3. Be it forever remembered that this compact declares that religion, 
morality and knowledge being necessary to good government and the happi- 
ness of mankind, schools and the means of education shall always be en- 
couraged. 

Dr. Cutler planted himself on this platform and would not yield, stating 
that unless they could procure these lands under desirable conditions and 
surroundings, that they did not care to purchase. On July 13, 1787, the bill 
became a law. Thus the great states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and 
Wisconsin were consecrated to freedom, intelligence and morality. On 
October 5, 1787, Congress elected General Arthur St. Clair governor of the 
Northwest territory. He assumed his official duties at Marietta and at once 
proceeded to treat with the Indians and organize a territorial government. 
He first organized a court at Marietta, consisting of three judges appointed by 
Congress, himself being president of the court. 

The Governor, with his judges, then visited Kaskaskia for the purpose 
of organizing a civil government, having previously instructed Alajor Ham- 
tramck at Vincennes to present the policy of the new administration to the 
several Indian tribes and learn their feelings. They received the messenger 
with a cool indifference, which, when reported to the governor, convinced him 
that nothing short of military force would command compliance with the 
civil government. He at once proceeded to Fort Washington to consult with 
General Harmar as to future action. In the meantime he intrusted to the 
secretary of the territory, Winthrop Sargent, the settlement of the disputed 
land claims, who found it a hard task, and in his reports states that he found 
the records so falsified, vouchers destroyed, and other crookedness as to make 
it impossible to get at a just settlement, which but again proves that the 
"graft" of the twentieth century existed decades before this word had been 
coined. 

The general court in 1790 passed stringent laws against the sale of 
intoxicating liquors to Indians and also to soldiers within ten miles of any- 
military post; also prohibiting any games of chance within the territory. 

The consultation between St. Clair and General Harmar ended by a de- 
cision to raise a large military force and thoroughly chastise the Indians 
about the head of the Wabash river. Accordingly, Virginia and Pennsyl- 
vania were called upon to muster eighteen hundred men at Fort Steuben, 
and, with the garrison of that fort, join the forces at Vincennes under Major 
Hamtramck, who proceeded up the Wabash as far as the \^ermillion river 
(3) 



34 HENDKICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

destroying villages, but without linding an enemy to oppose him. General 
Harmar, with one thousand four hundred and fifty men, marched from Fort 
Washington to the Maumee, and began punishing the Indians, but with little 
success. The expedition left Fort Washington September 30th, and returned 
to that place November 4th, having lost during that period one hundred and 
eighty-three men killed and thirty-one wounded. General Harmar's defeat 
alarmed as well as aroused the citizens in the frontier counties of Virginia, 
thinking the Indians might invade that state. 

The governor of Virginia called out the militia along the upper borders 
of that state; at the same time Charles Scott was appointed brigadier-general 
of the Kentucky militia now preparing to defend the frontiers of that state. 
This excited Congress and a war board was appointed, consisting of five 
members. On March 9, 1971, General Knox, secretary of war, wrote to 
General Scott recommending an expedition against the Indians on the 
Wabash. On March 3, 1791, Congress invested Governor St. Clair with the 
command of three thousand troops, and he was instructed by the secretary of 
war to march to the Miami village and establish a strong and permanent mili- 
tary post. After that was accomplished he was to seek the enemy with all 
his available forces and make them feel the effect of the superiority of the 
whites. 

THE ST. CLAIR AND WAYNE EXPEDITIONS. 

Although seriously damaged, the Indians were far from subdued. The 
Canadians and English along the border gave them much encouragement. In 
September, 1791, St. Clair moved from Fort Washington with a force of two 
thousand men and a number of pieces of artillery. November 3d he reached 
the headwaters of the Wabash, where Fort Recovery was later built, and 
here the army camped, consisting of one thousand four hundred effective 
men. The following morning the army advanced and engaged a force of 
twelve hundred Indians. Here the American army was disastrously defeated, 
having thirty-nine officers and five hundred and thirty-nine men killed and 
missing, twenty-two officers and two hundred and thirty-two men wounded. 
Several pieces of artillery and all their provisions were taken from them. 
The property loss was estimated at thirty-two thousand dollars. There has 
always been some disposition to blame General St. Clair for this awful de- 
feat, but his recent biographer, John Newton Boucher, of Greensburg, Penn- 
sylvania, proves conclusively that he w^as not to blame. Be that as it may, he 
resigned his commission after that battle and the work was taken up by 
General Anthony Wayne, of Revolutionary fame, who organized his forces 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 35 

at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and in October, 1793, moved westward at the 
head of an army of three thousand six hundred men. He proposed an of- 
fensive campaign. The Indians still held that the Ohio river should be the 
boundary line between the United States and their lands. 

Major-General Scott, with about sixteen hundred volunteers from Ken- 
tucky, joined the regular troops under General Wayne on July 26, 1794, and 
on the 28th the united force began their march for the Indian towns on the 
Maumee river. Arriving at the mouth of the Auglaize, they erected Fort 
Defiance and on August 15th the army advanced toward the British fort at 
the foot of the rapids of the Maumee, where, on the 20th, almost within 
reach of the British, the American army gained a decisive victory over the 
combined forces of the hostile Indians and a considerable number of Detroit 
militia at the battle of Fallen Timbers. The number of the enemy was esti- 
mated at two thousand, against about nine hundred American troops actually 
engaged. As soon as the action began this horde of savages abandoned them- 
selves to flight and dispersed with terror and dismay, leaving Wayne's victori- 
ous army in full possession of the field. The Americans lost thirty-three killed 
and one hundred wounded ; the loss of the enemy more than doubled this 
number. 

The army remained three days and nights on the banks of the Maumee, 
in front of the field of battle, during which time all the houses and corn- 
fields were consumed and destroyed for a considerable distance both above 
and below Fort Miami, as well as within pistol shot of the British, garrison, 
who were compelled to remain idle spectators to this general devastation and 
•conflagration among which were the houses, stores and property of Colonel 
McKee, the British Indian agent, and general stimulator of the war then 
•existing between the United States and the savages. On the return march to 
Fort Defiance the villages and corn fields for about fifty miles on each side 
of the Maumee were destroyed as well as those for a considerable distance 
around the post. 

ORIGIN OF FORT WAYNE. 

On September 14, 1794, the army under General Wayne commenced its 
march toward the deserted Miami villages at the confluence of St. Joseph and 
St. Mary's rivers, arriving October 17th, and on the following day the site 
of Fort Wayne was selected. The fort was completed November 22d and 
garrisoned by a strong detachment of infantry and artillery under the com- 
mand of Colonel John F. Hamtramck, who gave to the new fort the name 
of "Fort Wavne." The Kentuckv volunteers now returned to Fort Washing- 



36 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ton, and were mustered out of service. General Wayne, with the federal 
troops, marched to Greenville and took up his headquarters for the winter. 
Here, on August 5, 1795, after several months of active negotiation, this gal- 
lant officer succeeded in concluding a general treaty of peace with all the hostile 
tribes of the Northwest territory. This treaty opened the way for the flood 
of immigration for many years, and ultimately made the states and territories 
now constituting the mighty Northwest. 

Up to the organization of the Indiana territory there is but little history 
to record aside from those events connected with military affairs. In July, 
1796, after a treaty was concluded between the United States and Spain, the 
British garrison, with their arms, artillery and stores, were withdrawn from 
the posts within the boundaries of the United States northwest of the Ohio 
river, and a detachment of American troops consisting of sixty-five men 
under the command of Captain Moses Porter took possession of the evac- 
uated post of Detroit in the same month. 

ORGANIZATION OF INDIANA TERRITORY, JULY 4, 180O. 

On the hnal victory of the American army in 1796 the principal town 
within what is now the state of Indiana was Vincennes, which comprised 
only fifty houses, but presented a thrifty appearance. There was also a small 
settlement where Lawrenceburg now stands, and several smaller settlements 
around trading posts, and the total number of civilized inhabitants in the 
territory was estimated at four thousand eight hundred seventy-five. 

Indiana territory was organized by act of Congress May 7, 1800, the 
material features of the Ordinance of 1787 remaining in force and the people 
being invested with all the rights and advantages granted and secured by that 
ordinance. 

The seat of government was fixed at \"incennes. On May 13, 1800, 
William Henry Harrison, a native of Virginia, was appointed governor. 
John Gibson, of Pennsylvania, was made secretary of the territory. The 
government for Indiana territory went into active operation on July 4, 1800, 
and General Harrison called together the first territorial Legislature or Council 
January 12, 1801. From this time to 1810 the chief questions under dis- 
cussion were land speculators, African slavery and the hostile views of the 
Shawnee chief, Tecumseh, and his brother, the wily Prophet. 

Up to this time the sixth article of the Ordinance of 1787, prohibiting 
slavery, had been somewhat neglected and many French settlers held slaves; 
many slaves had been removed to slave-holding states. A session of dele- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 37 

gates elected by popular vote in the new territory met December 20, 1802, and 
petitioned Congress to revoke the sixth article of the old ordinance. Congress 
failed to grant this, as well as many other similar petitions. When it appeared 
from a popular vote in the territory that a majority of one hundred and thirty- 
eight were in favor of organizing a General Assembly, Governor Harrison, on 
September 11, 1804, issued a proclamation, and called for an election to be 
held in the several counties of the territory January 3, 1805, to choose mem- 
bers of the House of Representatives, who should meet at Vincennes, February 
I St. The delegates were duly elected and assembled as ordered, and they per- 
fected plans for territorial organization and selected ten men whose names 
were sent to President Jefferson and the President chose five of the number 
to act as members of the Council. The first General Assembly or Legislature 
of the territory met at Vincennes July 29, 1805. 

On July 30th the Governor delivered his first message to the Council 
and House of Representatives. Benjamin Parke, who came from New Jer- 
sey in 1 80 1, was the first delegate elected to Congress. 

The first newspaper published within the territory of Indiana was the 
Western Sun, first issued at Vincennes in 1803, by Elihu Stout, of Kentucky, 
and first named the Indiana Gazette, but changed to the Sun July 4, 1804. 

In 1810 the total population of Indiana was 24,520. There were then 
reported 33 grist mills, 14 saw mills, 3 horse mills, 18 tanneries, 28 distiller- 
ies, 3 powder mills, 1,256 looms, 1,300 spinning wheels; value of woolen, 
cotton, hemp and flax cloth, $150,059; of nails, 30,000 pounds; of wine 
from grapes, 96 barrels, and 50,000 pounds of maple sugar. 

The territory of Indiana was divided in 1805, when the territory of 
Michigan was established to comprise practically the same territory which it 
has today. In 1809 Illinois was set off and Indiana was left with practically 
its present limits. For the first half century after the settlement Vincennes 
grew slowly. 

The commandants and priests governed with aljsolute power; 
the whites lived in peace with the Indians. The necessaries of life were easily 
procured ; there was nothing to stimulate energy or progress. In such a state 
of society there was no demand for learning and science. Few could read 
and fewer still could write their own names; they were void of public spirit, 
enterprise or ingenuity. Not until the close of the war of 181 2 and 18 14 
did Indiana take on her vigorous growth, and since then she has kept pace 
with her sister states. In 1815 the total white population was sixty-three 
thousand eight hundred and ninety-seven. On February 13, 18 13, the Legis- 
lature in session at Vincennes changed the seat of government to Corydon. 



38 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Governor Posey took Governor Harrison's place May 25, 1813, for the latter 
was engaged in subduing the enemies of this country. 

Up to 181 1 a man must own at least fifty acres of land before he was 
entitled to cast his vote. To become a member of the Council he must pos- 
sess five hundred acres of land, and each member of the Legislature must 
needs own two hundred acres. 

In 1814 the territory was divided into three judicial districts. The 
Governor appointed the judges and the compensation was fixed at seven 
hundred dollars per annum. The same year two banks were authorized, the 
Mechanics Bank of Madison, with seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars, 
and the Bank of Vincennes, with a capital of five hundred thousand dollars.. 

STATE ORGANIZATION IN 1816. 

The last territorial Legislature convened at Corydon December 14, 181 5,. 
and petitioned Congress for authority to adopt a state constitution and main- 
tain a state government. Congress enacted the proper legislation and Indiana 
was made a state. On May 13, 1816, an election was held for forty-three 
delegates to a constitutional convention. That body met at Corydon, June 
loth to 29th, Jonathan Jennings presiding, and William Hendricks acting as 
secretary. 

The representatives in the constitutional convention were able men. 
The constitution they there formed for Indiana in 1816 was in no wise in- 
ferior to that of any other commonwealth in the Union at that date. 

The first state election was held the first Monday in August, 18 16, and 
Jonathan Jennings was elected governor, Christopher Harrison, lieutenant 
governor, and William Hendricks, representative to Congress. 

The close of the war of 1812 and 1814 was followed by a great rush of 
immigrants to the new state and in 1820 the state had more than doubled its 
population, having at this time one hundred and forty-seven thousand one 
hundred and seventy-eight inhabitants. This date was the Ijeginning of pros- 
perity for Indiana, and at this time begins our history of the county of Hen- 
dricks. 



CHAPTER III. 

EARLY SETTLEMENT AND ORGANIZATION. 

The history of the early settlement of Hendricks county would be 
worthy of treatment in a separate volume were the records and other sources 
of information in regard to those days in existence. At that time the im- 
portance of keeping such things was not realized, and consequently few can 
be obtained. The settlement of Hendricks county occurred early in 1820, 
within six years of one hundred years ago. Many of the people in the county 
today remember of hearing their fathers and mothers recount the thrilling 
tales of pioneer life in the early period of log rollings, husking bees, barbe- 
cues, cabin raisings, hunts and the thousand and one other incidents which 
were a part of the early life. Settlements were miles apart and social inter- 
course was 'difficult. So these entertainments afforded the only opportunities 
for the people to congregate, and these periods were generally months apart. 
So the pioneer lived alone with his family in the silent and mighty forest, 
sallying out before dawn to shoot the game or to cast a line in the stream 
nearby for the day's food supply. The meat of the wild game and the rough 
cereals raised in the patch of cleared ground provided the principal sustenance 
for the family; the clothes were manufactured by the women, who sat for 
days before the loom; linsey-woolsey and homespun, adorned with the skins 
of small animals, were the popular weaves. The good mother was the 
teacher of the children also; meager teaching it was, but thorough. 

Relative to the early settlement, it is well to quote a few paragraphs from 
the writings of Logan Esarey, an authority on Indiana history. He writes : 
"The attempt to better their economic condition was no doubt the cause that 
led a great majority of the immigrants to come to Indiana in the early period 
of its statehood. They were encouraged and many of them grossly deceived 
by the advertisements in the Indiana papers. The IVestern Sun and the 
Sentinel of Vincennes, the Indiana Republican of Madison, the Intelligencer 
and the Ledger of Richmond, from which the following data has been col- 
lected, are full of the most glowing accounts of the prosperity of this west- 
ern world. Judged from these papers, there was bustle and activity every- 
where. Cotton gins, ox mills, grist mills, salt wells, rich mines of silver and 



40 HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 

gold, steam saw mills, card mills, breweries were in need of laborers every- 
where. Dozens of towns, each sure to be a metropolis, were springing up 
and in which lots could be bought for a trifle and on credit. A steamer one 
hundred and sixty-six feet long was on the ways at Jeffersonville. Another 
would soon be launched at Bono to ply on the branches of White river. In- 
diana seemed to be a bee-hive of industry, glowing with opportunity for the 
poor and industrious. 

"The period from 1816 to 1825, while the capital was at Corydon, 
was one of unprecedented immigration into Indiana. The settlers crowded 
up the waterways beyond the middle of the state. The number of counties 
in the state rose from thirteen to fifty-two. Almost all of the territory south 
of White river was organized and the line of settlement was pushed well to 
the north of the National road. The latter had not yet been opened and 
practically all of the settlers came by way of or across the Ohio river." 

The long, weary journey in a covered wagon, over rough hills, through 
tangled valleys, fording streams, slow, tortuous miles traveled, made the 
final stopping point inviting to the settler, even if it consisted of but a con- 
venient nook in the forest or a sequestered spot on the banks of a stream, 
for it meant home wherever it was. The first nights were spent under the 
wagon-canopy or in a lean-to hastily erected of branches and grasses. The 
pioneer immediately began the erection of his cabin, hewing the logs and 
notching them into place. A fireplace was constructed in one end of the 
small hut, made of sticks and mud, and the fire therein afterward served the 
purpose of light, heat and as a cook-stove. The furniture of the interior 
was as rough as the cabin itself; three-legged stools, puncheon floor, a bed 
built against the wall, and a small table generally comprised the interior of 
the shack. The walls, through which numerous breezes penetrated, were 
hung on the inside with animal skins, that is, if such skins were procurable. 
However crude these homes might have been, the health and sturdiness of 
the occupants was mighty, and many of those who live today in luxury and 
idleness would swap their all for this strength of body and mind. 

A great part of the land in central Indiana in those days was swampy. 
Sloughs were scattered through the forests and were far from healthy. 
Ague among the settlers was an established illness, and the best remedy was 
quinine and whiskey, the latter in quantities. Fevers, the intermittent kind 
which attend malaria, were frequent too. The people believed many peculiar 
things about these ailments and the fear of miasma and germ-laden atmos- 
phere was wholesome. 




OLD HENDRICKS COUNTY COURT HOUSE 




V ?7\ff,r' 







PRESENT COURT HOUSE 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 4I 

Much more could be narrated in this chapter of the first days in the Hfe 
•of Hendricks county, but for the sake of unity these other facts are assigned 
to the other parts of the book, following closely their respective subjects. 

SURVEYS AND INDIAN TREATIES. 

At St. Mary's, Ohio, in 1818, a treaty was negotiated by Governor Jen- 
nings, General Cass and Judge Benjamin Parke, men who acted as govern- 
ment commissioners, with the Indians. The red men gave up all title to 
their unceded land south of the Wabash river, except reservations, which in- 
cluded the territory in central Indiana, out of which thirty counties have 
been laid off, among them Hendricks county. This was the largest of the 
fifty-two purchases which were required to obtain from the Indians all of 
the land in the state of Indiana. In the terms of this treaty it was stated that 
the Indians should have possession of their improvements and reside in the 
country for a period of three years, after which time a portion of them 
would have to go upon reservations, but the majority of them were to be 
transported beyond the great Mississippi river. The government surveys 
were stipulated to begin immediately, and the ceded lands to be opened to 
settlers. Prior to this time the land now forming Hendricks county had 
been occupied by the tribe of Delaware Indians, but, not being located on any 
of the great war trails or fighting grounds, there were no large Indian vil- 
lages or Indian improvements in this district. Hendricks county land was 
used principally as a hunting ground. 

The government plans were carried out and the survey started at once. 
Hendricks county was on the meridian line from which the beginning was 
made, and accordingly it was surveyed first in 1819. This survey started a 
great flood of immigration to every corner of the new purchase. In wagons, 
on foot, horseback, the sturdy men came to build their homes here. Loca- 
tions were indefinite and the settlers merely contented themselves with find- 
ing a convenient spot and then starting a clearing wherein to build their 
log homes. The Indians were not hostile; in fact, they were very friendly 
and assisted the home-seeker in many ways. Their knowledge of the hunt- 
ing and fishing grounds was often a great help to the stranger. 

Although the year specified for the removal of the Indians beyond the 
Mississippi was 182 1, it was not until 1826 that the last of them departed. 
When the first white men came to this county a large band of Indians was 
found camping on White Lick and Eel rivers. The former they called Wa- 



42 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

pe-ke-vvay, meaning "white salt;" and the latter they termed Sho-a-mack^ 
which meant"slippery fish." 

THE FIRST SETTLEMENT, 

In the territory now known and designated as Hendricks county the 
first settlement was made in the spring of the year 1820 on White Lick 
creek. The band of settlers who made this initial location, a few miles south 
of Plainfield, was composed of Bartholomew Ramsey, Samuel Herriman, 
Harris Bray, John W. Bryant, James Dunn, George Dunn and EzekieL 
Moore. 

The nearest settlements to this location were along the Wabash river, 
and in order to establish communication and a road for the transportatioa 
of supplies, these men cut a trail through the woods and bushes, and gave it 
the name of the Terre Haute trail. It passed through Hendricks county 
about a mile south of what was later the National road, and in this same year 
of 1820 Nathan Kirk, one of the settlers, afterwards one of the associate 
judges of the county, located on this trail in the southwest corner of the 
county and kept a public tavern. He later transported his goods to Clinton 
county and became the founder of the town of Kirklin. Kirk's prairie was 
also named after this man. 

In the spring months of 1821 Thomas Lockhart, Noah Kellum and 
Felix Belzer made settlement on the East fork of White Lick, in the south- 
east corner of what is now Guilford township. Belzer was the most notable 
of these three men, due to his reputation as a hunter. The tradition is that 
he killed one. hundred and twenty-five deer within a year after he settled in 
this county. It was in this year, 1821, that the first death occurred in the 
county, that of Uriah Carson, who had come from Ohio and entered land 
from the government. He died at the home of Felix Belzer. In the autumn 
of 1 82 1 William and Thomas Hinton, James Thompson and Robert Mc- 
Crackin settled on the West fork of White Lick, in the territory now com- 
prising Liberty township. Quite a number of other families settled in the 
territory now comprising Guilford and Washington townships in the follow- 
ing year of 1822, among them being Jeremiah Hadley, David Carter and 
Jonathan Hadley, who took the three adjoining farms on the hill immediate- 
ly east of Plainfield. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 43: 

SETTLEMENT IN 1824. 

In the year 1824 the population of the county was estimated to be one 
thousand people, settled mostly in the regions in the southeast, with a few 
settlers near the present site of Danville, Nathan Kirk and Jere Stiles in the 
southwest corner, and Noah Bateman and a few others along Eel river. 
The portion of the county now occupied by Union, Middle, Brown and Lin- 
coln townships was then a mosquito-infested swamp, and no settler had the- 
boldness to risk his health by settling there. As late as 1830 there were not 
more than thirty settlers within this locality. The more rapid and thicker 
settlement of the other portions of the county was due in a large measure to 
the better drainage facilities. The northeastern portion of the county was 
also settled slowly. The building of the Cumberland or National road 
through the south part of the county in 1830 gave a great advantage to the 
southern part, this road being a highway for the tide of immigration to the 
far West. Many of these transcontinental travelers found reason to stop in 
this locality and remained and became permanent residents. Prac- 
tically every farmer kept open house; every home was a hotel, and many of 
the settlers became moderately wealthy by their hospitality. 

FIRST IMPROVEMENTS. 

The first mill constructed in the county was a horse-mill on East fork 
of White Lick. It was built and owned by Jauies Tomlinson. The first 
water-mill was built by John P. Benson on Rock branch in Eel River town- 
ship in 1826. The first merchandise was sold in Danville by James L. Given. 
The first resident attorneys were Judge Marvin and Colonel Nave, the latter 
locating in Danville in 1832, where he was engaged in the practice of law 
for more than fifty years, until his death, in 1884. In the summer of 1823 
the two first school houses were built in the county, one in Liberty township, 
below Cartersburg, and the other on Thomas Lockhart's land in Guilford 
township, and in them W. H. Hinton and Abijah Pierson taught the first 
schools in the county. In this paragraph it is well to mention that the first 
birth in the county was that of Silas J. Bryant, who was born in Guilford 
township in 1820, the son of J. W. Bryant. 

OTHER FIRST EVENTS. 

The first marriage license issued by the county clerk was for the mar- 
riage of James Reynolds and Rachel Demoss on November 17. 1824. Sam- 



44 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

uel Jessup, the first justice of the peace, performed the ceremony. In this 
same month Charles Merritt and Jemimie Leaman were married by Aaron 
Homan, a justice of the peace. 

The first land deed was made on November 3, 1825, between Samuel 
Woodward and his wife, Abigail. 

The first will recorded in the county was that of Uriah Hults, a farmer. 

ORGANIZATION OF HENDRICKS COUNTY. 

The act organizing the county of Hendricks was approved on December 
29. 1823. The county was named in honor of William Hendricks, then gov- 
ernor of the state of Indiana. The act follows : 

"Section i. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of In- 
diana, That from and after the first day of April next, all that part of the 
county of Wabash included in the following boundary, viz. : Beginning at 
the southeast corner of section 20, in township 14 north, of range 2 east, 
thence west twenty miles to the east line of Putnam county, thence north 
with said line twenty miles, to the northwest corner of section 18, in town- 
ship ly, in range 2 west, thence east twenty miles, to the northwest corner 
of Marion county, thence south twenty miles with said county line, to the 
place of beginning, shall form and constitute a new county, to be known 
and designated by the name and style of the county of Hendricks. 

"Sec. 2. The said new county of Hendricks shall, from and after the 
first day of April next, enjoy all the rights, privileges and jurisdiction which 
to separate and independent counties do, or may properly belong and ap- 
pertain. 

"Sec. 3. That William Templeton, of Lawrence county, William Mc- 
Culloch, of Monroe county, Calvin Fletcher, of Marion county, Abel Cole, 
•of Shelby county, and John Smiley, of Johnson county, be, and they are 
hereby appointed commissioners, agreeably to an act entitled, 'An act for 
fixing the seats of justice in all new counties hereafter to be laid off.' The 
commissioners above named shall meet at the house of the late William 
Ballard, in said county of Hendricks, on the second Monday of July next, 
and shall immediately proceed to discharge the duties assigned them bv laws. 
It is hereby made the duty of the sheriff of Morgan county to notify the 
said commissioners, either in person or by written notification, of their ap- 
pointment, on or before the first day of June next; and the said sheriff of 
Morgan county shall receive from the said county of Hendricks so much for 
his services as the county commissioners, who are hereby authorized to 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 45 

allow the same, shall deem reasonable, to be paid out of any moneys in the 
treasury of said county, in the same manner that all other moneys are paid. 

"Sec. 4. The circuit courts and all other courts of the county of Hen- 
dricks shall meet an be holden at the house of the late William Ballard in 
said county of Hendricks, until suitable accommodations can be had at the 
seat of justice in said county, when they shall adjourn the circuit courts 
thereto; after which time all the courts of the county of Hendricks shall be 
holden at the county seat of Hendricks county, established by law. Pro- 
vided, however, that the circuit court shall have authority to remove the 
court from the said house of the late William Ballard to any other place in 
the said county of Hendricks previous to the completion of the public build- 
ings, should the said court deem it expedient. 

"Sec. 5. The board of commissioners for the said county of Hen- 
dricks shall within twelve months after the seat of justice shall have been 
selected, proceed to erect the necessary public buildings thereon. They shall 
also hold a special session on the first Monday in May next, for the purpose 
of appointing an assessor and transacting such other business as may be 
necessary. 

"Sec. 6. The said new county of Hendricks shall form a part of the 
counties of Montgomery and Putnam, for the purpose of electing senators 
and representatives to the General Assembly, until otherwise directed by law. 

"Sec. 7. The same powers, privileges and authorities that are granted 
to the qualified voters of the county of Dubois and other counties named in 
the act entitled, 'An act incorporating a county library in the counties therein 
named,' approved January 28, 181 8, to organize, conduct and support a 
county library, are hereby granted to the qualified voters of the county of 
Hendricks, and the same power and authority therein granted to, and the 
same duties therein required of the several officers, and the person or per- 
sons elected by the qualified voters of Dubois county, and other counties 
named in the said act, for carrying into effect the provisions of the act en- 
titled, 'An act incorporating a county library in the county of Dubois, and 
other counties therein named,' according to the true intent and meaning 
thereof, are hereby extended to and required of the officers and other per- 
sons elected by the qualified voters of the county of Hendricks. 

"This act to take effect and be in force from and after its passage." 

SELECTION OF COUNTY SEAT. 

According to the provisions of this act, the men selected began to in- 
vestigate several claims made for the location of the county seat. Many 



46 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

localities were at work striving for the honor, among them the commnnity 
near George Mattock's tavern, two miles east of Belleville, where a town 
had been laid out named Hillsboro. This site was discarded in favor of a 
location as near as possible to the geographical center of the county, and on 
the second Monday in July, 1824, the site of Danville was chosen. Four 
men, Daniel Beals. George Matlock, Robert Wilson and James Downard, 
being the owners of land in four sections having a common corner, each 
donated twenty acres touching the common corner for the benefit of the 
county seat, all of which was laid out into public square and town lots. 

Thomas Hinton was appointed agent of the county, and on October 20, 
1824, he placed on file a plat of the town of Danville. The lots were immedi- 
ately put up at a public sale, and this continued for three days. An order was 
made by the commissioners for fifteen gallons of whiskey to assist the pur- 
chasers in making their selection. Samuel Herriman, the coroner, was the dis- 
tributor on this occasion. The price paid for the lots ranged from three to 
one hundred and fifteen dollars. The latter price was given by Mr. Hulse 
for the lot on the northeast corner of Main and Washington streets. The 
lot on the southwest corner brought the next highest price. 

The court house was completed and the first term of court held in Dan- 
ville in April of the year 1826. The building was constructed of peeled 
hickory logs and cost one hundred and forty-seven dollars. The jail was of 
the same material. 

■ The first county commissioners were Thomas Lockhart, Gideon Wil- 
son and Littlebury Blakely. They divided the county into nine townships, 
•of nearly equal area, and there was sufficient population in but four of the 
townships at that time to give them a civil organization. The first repre- 
,sentative of the county in the General Assembly was Lewis Mastin. 



CHAPTER IV. 

BROWN TOWNSHIP. 



TOPOGRAPHY. 



In the extreme northeast corner of Hendricks county Hes Brown town- 
ship, comprising about twenty-five square miles of land in townships i6 and 
I*? north, ranges i and 2 east. On the north the township is bounded by 
Boone county, on the east by Marion county, on the south by Lincoln town- 
•ship and on the west by Middle township. White Lick creek, passing through 
the western side of the township, drains the largest portion of the land, 
although Eagle creek carries a large quantity of water from the high country 
along the eastern border. The soil of Brown township is rich and produc- 
tive, the nature of the ground being rolling. The central portion is for the 
most part very level and. before the excellent system of drainage used today, 
was swampy and of little value. The clay and alluvial soil found in Brown 
township is without a superior in the county or middle Indiana and is now 
worth a high price per acre. Practically every acre is under cultivation and 
made to yield to the utmost of its productiveness without impoverishing the 
-soil. 

EARLY SETTLEMENT. 

Until the year 1863 Brown township included what is now Lincoln 
township. Brown township was named after James Brown, who was the 
first settler within its boundary. David Sparks, however, was the first white 
man in this territory ; he came in the year 1827, three years before any definite 
settlement had been made in this portion of the county. Owing to the 
unfortunate location of the township it has no railroad or interurban line, 
hut the general fertility of its soil largely makes up for this deficiency. 

FIRST ELECTION. 

The first general election in Brown township was in 1828. From the 
poll book and tally sheet the following is taken : "At an Election held at 



^8 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

the hous of James Brown on the 4th day of August 1828 for the purpos; 
of Electing one Govinor one Lieutenant Govinor one Representator to Cong- 
ress one Sinitor one representative to State Legislater one Coriner the follow- 
ing is a list ot the number of votes taken and also the number Each Candidate 
receivs." There were twelve voters at this election, namely: James Brown, 
Joseph Runion, Joshua Newham, William Harris, Thomas Nash, Daniel 
Newham, George Tyler, James R. Smith, Shannon Booster, Edward Rails- 
back, Jesse Smith and Nathaniel W. Hults. Politically, the township has 
been strongly Democratic from the beginning. 

BROWN TOWNSHIP IN I914. 

The statement has been made that Brown township holds a singular place 
among the other townships, by not having the usual transportation facilities 
and the lack of towns. This fact by no means is evidence that the township 
is behind the others. The farmers are intelligent and capable and the farms 
they manage are modern and well kept. The science of agriculture has not 
been a neglected art in this locality, in fact it has been much encouraged, and 
the tiller of the soil embraces every opportunity to improve his knowledge 
of the best methods of cultivation. 

Roads in this township are excellent, of macadam and gravel and in a 
high state of improvement. This lends quick access to the railroads and 
other points in the county. Telephones, both local and long distance, have 
enabled the people to come into closer communication with their fellows. 
Schools are now set to a standard of high efficiency, the consolidated school 
system rapidly coming into effect. 

Not only has the farmer paid attention to his farm land, but he has built 
his residence and his buildings in the most up-to-date fashion. All con- 
veniences are found in the present farm home the same as in the city. Elec- 
tric lights, telephones, steam heat, water power and sewerage systems are but 
a few of these. 




NEAR TO NATURE'S HEART 



CHAPTER V. 



CENTER TOWNSHIP. 



TOPOGRAPHY. 

In the center of Hendricks county is located the township of Center. 
It is in townships 15 and 16 north, ranges i east and 2 west, comprising 
about forty-six square miles. It is bounded on the north by Union and 
Middle townships, on the east by Middle and Washington, on the south by 
Liberty and Clay, and on the west by Clay, Marion and Eel River townships. 
The west fork of White Lick creek, its tributaries, and Mill creek drain the 
land within the bounds of this township, supplemented today by a very effi- 
cient system of artificial drainage. With the exception of the deep, precipi- 
tous valley worn through the center of the township by White Lick, the 
nature of the land is undulating and level. The highest elevation of land 
in the county is in Center township, gradually sloping away to the border. 
Woodland once covered this territory, but it has now been reduced to a 
minimum. It embraces a body of land unexcelled for grazing and of very 
high rank for fruit and grain production. 

EARLY SETTLEMENT AND ELECTION. 

It is recorded that the earliest settlement was made in Center township 
in the year 1823. Very few people ever lived in this portion of the county 
until after the platting of the town of Danville, from which time it began to 
grow. 

There was a general election held in Center township on August 7, 1826, 
votes being cast for congressman, senator, representative, sheriff and coroner. 
There were about two hundred people in the township at that time and sixty- 
six persons voted. The list of voters was as follows : Francis Barbee, 
Thomas Hinten, Richard Christie, Elijah Thompson, Dickison Thompson, 
James Thompson, Jeremiah Cutbirth, Thomas Nichols, William Moore, 
George Moore, Thomas Shelton, lonathan Wvatt, Nathaniel Kirk, Thomas 

~ (4) 



50 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



Irons, Ezekiel Moore, William Crane, George Moore, Jr., Moses Williams, 
William Moore, Sr., John Green, Samuel Gwinn, John Bryant, John Ristine, 
Martin Cooper, David Downs, Eli Townsend, Samuel Harriman, Thomas 
Howell, Thomas J. Walker, John Hanna, Thomas B. Clark, David Adams, 
Robert Cooper, Lemuel Hopkins, Joseph Dunn, George W. Pope, William 
Herron. Stephen Cook, Jesse Cook, Silas Bryant, Abel Stanley, Levi Kind- 
man, Eli Morris, Job Osborn, Daniel Clark, William Pope. B. Dunn, Andy 
Clark, John Dunn, John Calor, James Downard, Preston Pennington, Nim- 
rod Harrison, James Logan, John Moore, John Downs. James Williams, 
David Matlock, Stephen Annel, Thomas Walker, Jefferson Matlock, P. S. 
Dickens, David McDonald, Levi Jessup, George C. Brightman and Erasmus 
Nichols. 

CENTER TOWNSHIP TODAY. 

Because of the location of Danville, the county seat, Center township 
today occupys in some respects the foremost place among the twelve town- 
ships of the county. In richness, in agriculture and kindred vocation, she is 
not superior to all of the townships, but holds a high position and is deserv- 
ing of much credit. The taxpayers are loyal and willing to support any 
movement for the good of the township and consequently civic pride and 
intelligent interest in the country has gained a prominent place. The land 
surrounding Danville is very good farming ground and a visit to the numer- 
ous estates will convince the critic that the most modern and efficient methods 
are used by the farmer in the cultivation of his soil. The homes dotting the 
broad farms are attractive and equal to the home of the man with urban ad- 
vantages, something which twenty years ago would have been believed im- 
possible. Telephones, excellent roads, railroads and interurban lines, all 
contribute to the easy communication with all parts of the county and the 
state capital. Distance has ceased to be a factor in present-day life. The 
schools of Center township are of the first class, the religious life is pro- 
nounced, and behind all there is a spirit of goodfellowship, progress and in- 
dustry which prophesies greater and greater things to come. 

DANVILLE. 

In the year 1824 the first dwelling was constructed on the site of Danville 
by Daniel Clark. This structure was a log cabin. Immediately after the 
location of Clark's cabin several other settlers came to the immediate vicinity 
and made their homes. By the following winter there were quite a number 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 5 1 

of people living in the neighborhood — in fact, sufficient in number to start a 
school. The first man to teach here was Wesley McKinley. Doctor Garrett 
was the first physician to administer to the ill. A hotel, or rather, a log 
tavern, was opened to the public by Levi Jessup, the first county clerk. He 
was succeeded in this business in 1828 by Col. Thomas Nichols, who came 
to Danville in that year and became sheriff of the county. Nichols also inter- 
ested himself in building houses. In 1829, he constructed, at Danville, the 
first brick school house in Hendricks county. 

In another chapter it is stated that the town of Danville was officially laid 
out by Thomas Hinton on October 20, 1824. 

Immediately after this, cabins began to spring up and with the first one 
erected by Clark were many, just as unpretentious, but inviting. James 
L. Givin set up a small store on the north side of the square and there the 
first merchandise was sold. Flour was not among his stock, however, and 
people were compelled to go to Indianapolis after that product. The first 
court house, constructed of peeled hickory logs, cost one hundred and forty- 
seven dollars. The jail, made of the same material, was back of the build- 
ing recently occupied by the Thompson jewelry store. It was considered 
impregnable, with its thick walls, small, high windows, puncheon floors and 
dungeon The first hotel, then called a tavern, was a large, rambling two- 
story building situated on the lot now occupied by Beck's restaurant. With 
its square and multipaned windows, massive door and large chimney, it was a 
picturesque building. Along the alley was a long, mossy trough, hollowed 
from a log, from which horses were watered from the tavern well. This 
tavern was a busy place, especially when court was in session. Those who 
attended court had to travel over many miles on horseback, through sloughs 
and forests, over fallen trees, across streams and every other obstacle which 
impeded the journey of the early traveler. Arriving at the tavern door, cold, 
tired and hungry, they found rest and food in plenty. The food was not 
served by courses, or miniature quantities in side dishes, but was literally 
piled upon the table, the chief dish often being a Avhole roast pig. 

INCORPORATION. 

The record of incorporation of the town of Danville reads as follows : 
"We, the undersigned. President and Clerk of an election held at the 
court house in the town of Danville, on the 24th day of January. A. D. 1835, 
agreeably to an order of the Board of County Commissioners, within and for 



^2 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

the county of Hendricks, at their January term, 1835, for the purpose of 
electing five Trustees to serve the corporation of said town of Danville, do 
certify that at the election aforesaid, we, the undersigned, President and Clerk 
as aforesaid, after being duly sworn according to law, did proceed to lay off 
the said town into five districts, as follows, to-wit : District No. One is com- 
posed of Blocks No. I, 2, 3, 14, 15 and 16; District No. Two, of Blocks Nos. 
17, ]8, 19, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33 and 34; District No. Three, of Blocks Nos. 4, 
13, 28 and 35; District No. Four, of Blocks Nos. 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12; 
District No. Five, of Blocks Nos. 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 36, 37, 38 and 
39; and after the division of the said town into districts, and the same being 
made known to the qualified voters thereof, who then proceeded to elect one 
trustee from each district, whereupon the following persons were duly 
elected, to-wit: Disrict No. i, Henry G. Todd; District No. 2, Jubal Lee; 
District No. 3, Charles B. Naylor; District No. 4. James M. Gregg; and 
District No. 5, William S. Crawford. The foregoing certificate, given pur- 
suant to the revised code for such case made and provided, together with 
an act entitled 'An act amendatory of the act entitled an act for the incor- 
poration of towns,' approved February 2, 1832. Given under our hands 
and seals, this 27th day of January, 1835. 

"J. M. Gregg, President. 

"Henry G. Todd, Clerk." 
After some years under this town charter, it was surrendered, but re- 
newed and the town reincorporated in the year 1859. 

TOWN beginnings. 

About the time of the incorporation of Danville the young town was 
becoming a centering place for the farmers of the county and was regarded 
as a particularly beautiful place. At that, the appearance of the village was 
far from what the present dweller would call attractive. The street at the 
northeast corner of the square was almost a marsh, although steps had been 
taken to fill it in. The present hollow, a square south of the college, now 
being filled and a street put through, then extended westward to the Mc- 
Curdy block and on Tennessee street there was a bridge across it. At the 
west end of the hollow was a spring of pure water, as there was also in the 
court house yard. When an election was held in the town some of the 
voters would get thirsty and depart for the spring in the hollow to get a 
drink. However, their source of supply was a keg hidden in the bushes 
alongside the spring. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 53 

The main business portion of the town was on the north side of the 
square. The first brick business room was constructed by Colonel Nave in 
1832. It was a square law office, almost comparable in size to a piano box, 
but was considered elegant then. The second brick building was located on 
the spot now occupied by Darnell's "Yaller Front." Before it was erected 
the first postoffice stood there. The postmaster, who was a saddler, plied his 
trade in the front room. All the stores at this time were general stores, that 
is, they kept every article of merchandise desired by the settler from dry 
goods and groceries to plows. 

This, in a measure, supplies the reader with a picture of the early Dan- 
ville. The town has never grown to city proportions, but the improvement 
since those early times have been timely, and as thorough as if the town had 
enlarged to ten thousand population. 

NAMING OF COUNTY SEAT. 

The man directly responsible for the naming of the county seat of Hen- 
dricks county was Judge William Watson Wick, one of the pioneer jurists 
of Indiana. He was judge of the fifth circuit, composed of Lawrence, Mon- 
roe, Morgan, Greene, Owen, Marion, Hendricks, Rush, Decatur, Bartholo- 
mew. Shelby, Jennings and Johnson counties. Judge Wick was holding court 
in Hendricks county when the commissioners were discussing what to name 
the county seat. The Judge had a brother named Dan and in honor of him 
he urged the commissioners to adopt the name Danville, which was done. , 

AN OLD resident's IDEA OF EARLY DANVILLE. 

From the manuscript of H. Henry, one of the first men in Danville, the 
following is taken : 

'T came to Danville in August, 1858. That year was, in the language 
of the farmers, a wet year. The train upon which we came waded through 
what Major Verbrike would have called 'a wilderness of mud and water' and 
it made the trip from Cincinnati to Cartersburg in eight hours, which was 
considered fast time in those days. Coming up to town from Cartersburg in 
Keeney's hack, I had for fellow passengers Professor Tarr and Clint Petty. 
The Professor was on his first trip to town to make arrangements to or-i 
ganize the Danville Academy. He was dressed as a minister and was full of 
missionary zeal. I was loaded for Indians and wild game, and carried a 
double-barreled shot-gun. Petty was armed with a stone pipe, loaded with 



54 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

long-range tobacco, and, being on his own native soil, he 'got the drop' on the 
bear hunter and the missionary at once. The Professor looked at my gun and 
turned up his nose at Petty's pipe, which had made him sea-sick, while he 
said, 'Please, sir, do not smoke the pipe in this hack,' Petty answered, 
'Stranger, I will compromise with you. I will hold my head outside of the 
window.' The Professor looked at me and my gun as if he wished to shoot 
the pipe, but I never said a word. I became a silent partner in the compromise 
with the ways of the wild and woolly west. 

''On our arrival in town we were met by the imimortal Boone O' Haver, 
who was the self-appointed keeper of the gates of the city. Boone directed 
Professor Tarr to the home of a good Methodist brother. Then he took my 
gun in his hands and escorted me and the oil-cloth carpet sack over to Henry 
Howell's grocery on the east side of the square, where he introduced me to 
the 'boys.' Boone gave me a hearty reception. He went in the grocer}- and 
brought out a mammoth watermelon and cut it and made the usual mistake 
of quoting Scripture and crediting it to Shakespeare, by saying to the crowd: 
'Come unto me all ye that are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest.' 

"The first thing I remember concerning politics after coming to Danville 
was a joint discussion between Martin M. Ray and Albert G. Porter. The 
slavery question was, of course, the bone of contention. The orators talked 
much about 'border ruffians' and 'bleeding Kansas' and had much to say 
about 'squatter sovereignty.' After the speaking, a tramp shoemaker named 
Cary Maul, who had gathered the impression that 'squatter sovereignty' was 
an individual, a bully who had set down on all the government lands in the 
West and had caused all the political troubles, declared that he would go to 
Kansas and 'put a hole through Old Squatter Sovereignty.' He added that 
if Nebraska Bill did not look out he would get shot, too. 

''James Peters, a journeyman musical instrument maker, who made dul- 
cimers for Vinson Hamblin in Samuel Hawkins' chair shop, was a genius that 
only a Charles Dickens could describe properly. He resembled Julius Caesar. 
He was a college graduate and had, before coming to Danville, been a clerk 
of a court in Ohio. Peters had met a disappointment in love and had made 
an unsuccessful effort to drown his sorrows in opium and liquor. One day, 
while under the influence of liquor, he threw a bucket and a bundle of ax- 
handles through the show-window of a drug store and would have painted 
the town red if it had not been for the officers of the law. When the marshal 
and his deputies arrived at Squire Singer's office with Peters there was a 
large crowd there to see the fun. The Squire was scared and his hand trem- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 55 

bled so that he was unable to write. Peters stood before the court with the 
skirt of his blue cloth coat, which the officers had torn while making the ar- 
rest, dragging on the floor. He said in a voice which would have done credit 
to Edwin Forrest, addressing the crowd, 'We did not come here to praise 
Caesar, but to bury him.' Then he walked around the railing and took the 
pen out of the trembling hand of the justice and made the necessary entries 
on the docket, instructed the prosecutor as to his duties, worked in the ca- 
pacity of attorney for both sides of the case and so expedited the business of 
the court that the trial lasted only a few minutes. He paid his fine and went 
to Armstrong's tailoring shop for repairs. Peters and Judge Marvin used 
to discuss for hours the subject of astronomy. They had, according to Wel- 
shans, completely covered the walls and floor of the room with diagrams of 
the heavens and the earth, drawn in chalk. Peters had taken the contrary 
side in the argument in order to draw the Judge out. The debate closed by 
the Judge calling Peters a blank fool. Peters was living in Springfield, Illi- 
nois, when Lincoln was nominated and he wrote to Alf. Welshans a nice 
letter describing the jollification held at Lincoln's home. 

"Warner Vestal, editor of the Hendricks County Ledger, requested 
Peters to read the proof of a long article he had written for that paper. Pe- 
ters took the proof slips to his room and in about two hours he came back 
with the slips together with an exhaustive criticism on the article longer than 
the original. Vestal said, 'I can not make the corrections on your article in 
time to go to press.' Peters said, 'My article? I have written nothing that 
needs correcting.' 'You wrote the whole business,' said the editor. Peters 
had written the first article when intoxicated and did not remember it. He 
was at himself when he read the proof. The article was put on the dead gal- 
ley rack, but the proof slips and the criticisms were kept as object lessons by 
the editor and printers for many a day. Peters met his fate in Libby prison 
near the close of the war. 

"Thomas N. Jones was a many-sided character and a good citizen. He 
was fond of all kinds of innocent amusements and at almost every enter- 
tainment he was a star performer, always appearing in a comedy of blun- 
ders. Whether it was the mind-reading phrenologist or the gag of the circus 
clown or the mystifying ventriloquist or the simple twist of the wrist of the 
street fakir, Tom always took the cake as the victim of every trick and joke. 
During the years that the 'Sons of Temperance' wave ^ wept over the country, 
that society held a temperance celebration at Indianapolis. On the day of the 
grand parade, Tom was in command of the Hendricks county division. The 
weather was very hot, the people in the parade were very thirsty and a com- 



26- HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

mittee was supplying drinking water, which they carried in buckets. Tom's 
division had been served with a drink, but it did not satisfy Tom and he 
arose in his regalia and. 'fuss and feathers' to the attitude of a magazine pic- 
ture of 'Washington crossing the Delaware,' and yelled at the top of his voice, 
'More water for the Danville delegation.' The grotesqueness of the com- 
mander's efforts to get drinks for the banner temperance delegation was too 
much for the spectators and they responded with laughter and applause. And 
Tom's words were passed along the line and were the toast of the day to 
which tin cups rattled and beer glasses clinked. To the day of Jones' death, 
he never heard the last of 'More water for the Danville delegation.' 

"One day at a. circus he assisted Richard Hemming, the celebrated rope- 
walker, in a tight rope act. Hemming carried Mr. Jones under the rope by 
straps looped to his feet. When the walker arrived over the dustiest spot in 
the ring he let Mr. Jones fall in the dirt to the infinite delight of the au- 
dience, who greeted him with the usual encore. To this day tight rope and 
Tom Jones are twin geraniums. The secret order known as the Sons of 
Malta did not have a lodge in Danville, but Jones never missed anything. He 
went to Indianapolis and joined and very nearly met his death during his 
initiation into the order. The practical jokers worked him up to a fever heat 
until he almost sweat blood, then let him fall from a great height into a tank 
of ice water. He admitted that this experience took the conceit out of him, 
but don't you believe it." 

PRESENT CITY. 

The officers of the town of Danville in 1914 are: F. H. Huron, C. E. 
Allred, H. S. Curtis, W. L. Holman, Simon Hadley, trustees; Charles T. 
Clark, clerk; James V. Cook, treasurer; Thomas R. Harney, engineer; John 
Hume and C. W. Gaston, attorneys, and W. T. Lawson, health officer. 

In eleven blocks in Danville the streets are paved with brick and there is 
in addition twelve miles of macadam streets and many miles of cement side- 
walks. 

An extensive sewerage system is now being placed in Danville, the cost 
of which is to be close to twenty thousand dollars. A septic tank for the 
purification of the sewage is constructed east of town. 

The Danville water works, a municipal plant, supplies the town with pure 
water from artesian wells. 

The water used in Danville is without a superior in the United States. It 
comes from flowing wells and is almost entirely pure. It is also of high 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 57 

medicinal value. The formal analysis follows: Solids, 33.9; chlorein, faint 
trace; ammonia, none; nitrates, nitrites, none; total hardness, 8.65. It is 
medicinal in quality. Not a case of typhoid fever has been contracted in the 
town since this water has been used. 

The Danville Light, Heat and Power Company, a corporation owned by 
Indianapolis capital, is the largest of its kind in the county and one of the 
largest in the state. It is considered a model plant. It is worth about one 
hundred thousand dollars. This company supplies power not only for Dan- 
ville, but also for Plainfield, Clayton, Pittsboro and Brownsburg, also many 
farm houses. It is the ambition of this concern to supply the power for every 
factory in Hendricks county. The power house is fitted with all the modern 
machinery to be found in plants of its kind. The town of Danville is con- 
sidering a new system of street lighting, to replace the old style now in use. 

COMMERCIAL CLUB. 

The Danville Commercial Club was organized on January 20, 191 1. The 
organization is governed by a constitution and by-laws, which provides a fee 
of five dollars for membership and fifty cents dues per month for each mem- 
ber. They also provide for numerous committees, among which are the 
executive committee of seven members, boosting committee of ten members, 
an advertising committee of five members, and from time to time special 
-committees are appointed to carry out worthy projects. 

Early in its career the club organized a boys' band, which has continued 
to be a success to the present time. The club has, among its many aims, the 
following : to secure more factories, better mail and transportation facilities, 
to decrease danger at car crossings by reducing speed limit and to urge the 
installation of proper signals, to create a suburban residence city, to keep 
the town clean and the atmosphere pure, to create better business conditions 
by securing better markets for farm products. 

SOCIAL CLUBS. 

In harmony with the cultured life of Danville, there are several social 
clubs, which, in themselves, form an important part of the town. Charity, 
high moral standards, patriotism, civic honor, education, purity of life, honor- 
able ambition, are sentiments that mark the right growth of a city and these 
sentiments have been promoted by the noble women of Danville, individually 
-and in club life and organized concert of action. All these clubs do their 



58 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

part to lighten burdens, to broaden education, and to promote the graces of 
true culture. 

The Social Dozen is a club with a membership limited to fourteen. It is- 
an embroidery club and its object is to do variegated needlework, besides tne 
social side. 

The Afternoon Circle was organized February 8, 1907, and its object is 
to acquire excellence in embroidery work. 

The Bay View Study Club was organized in Danville in February, 1912, 
with sixteen charter members. Its membership is limited. The object of the 
club is to take up current and literary topics for discussion, as well as travel 
subjects. 

The Embroidery Club was organized in 1898 by Mrs. James McCoun 
and Airs. John W. Trotter. It was originally called the Who, When and 
What Club. The name signifies the character of the club. 

The Browning Club was organized on September 12, 1891, with a mem- 
bership limited to twenty-five. The object of the club is that the members 
get better knowledge of the poet, Browning, and consequent mental and 
moral development. The poetic study is not entirely confined to Robert 
Browning. 

The Philomathean Club is a literary organization which started October 
13, 1909. 

The Cozy Club was organized about 1900 for the purpose of improve- 
ment in the use of the needle. 

The J. O. Club has for its purpose social development and mutual in- 
struction in the art of domestic science. 

The Charity Coterie was organized in December, 1908, and the motto, 
"Do Something for Somebody" adopted. The field of work for this club is 
a large one, including charitable work of every kind and care for the town, 
attention to social life and various pursuits. 

The Up-to-Date Club was organized in October, 1898, and was to be 
made up of the young married women of the town, whose object was to keep 
in accord with the history of current events, the improvement and pleasure 
of themselves and their homes. Domestic science is studied, also literature 
and kindred subjects. 

The Modern Priscilla Club devotes its energies to the study of literature 
and the art of embroidery. 

The Half Century Club, to which none are eligible except those over 
fifty years of age, has for its object sociability. 




1 1 i I 




ft*vlcla>*l^;^r;o»i;jh|^^-1^^^■.^^ ^r^mC~'-r-'r. , , -*"?■ -^ . : - ,- . " .' ^;,- ;;;;;"■, •; - 



DANVILLE'S CLASSIC LIBRARY BUILDING 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 59 

DANVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY. 

In February, 1902, the president of the Commercial Club, Mord Carter, 
wrote a letter to Andrew Carnegie, explaining the needs of the town for 
funds to build a library building, which resulted in an ofTer from Mr. Car- 
negie to donate ten thousand dollars for the erection of the building, pro- 
vided that the town would make a levy that would raise on thousand dollars 
per year and provide a suitable site for the building. The Commercial Club, 
ladies' clubs, college faculty, town trustees, school board and citizens came 
forward with aid and a literary board was organized under the acts of 1901. 
A lot was purchased by popular subscription and the plans submitted by S. C. 
Dark, of Indianapolis, Indiana, were accepted. A contract was let to W. C. 
Halstead & Company of Franklin, Indiana, for the erection of the building. 
The township afterward came in under the provisions of the law and made a 
levy of one-tenth of a mill on each dollar and the town a levy of one cent on 
the dollar, the two levies raising about one thousand five hundred dollars an- 
nually for the support and building up of the library. 

The building was dedicated on September 5, 1903. The ladies' clubs 
raised about three hundred dollars for books and many other volumes were 
donated, making in all about one thousand volumes. The number of volumes 
in the library in May, 191 4, is about five thousand. Most of the leading 
magazines of the country are taken. There are enrolled upon the books of 
the library at this latter date nineteen hundred and sixty readers. The pres- 
ent board consists of the following: Dr. Joel T. Barker, Henry C. Hadley, 
Mrs. Mattie A. Keeney, Mrs. Josephine K. Thomas. Mrs. J. D. Hogate, 
Charles Z. Cook. \\\ C. Osborne, John \\\ Whyte and Thad. S. Adams. Dr. 
Joel T. Barker is president ; Thad. S. Adams, vice-president ; Henry C. Had- 
ley, treasurer ; Mrs. Josephine K. Thomas, secretary ; Miss Lou Robinson, 
librarian, and Mrs. Alartha L. Scearce, assistant librarian. 

POSTMASTERS. 

The postmasters who have served in Danville since the beginning, with 
the dates of their appointment, are as follows: James M. Buckner, April i, 
1825; William S. Crawford, February 18. 1829; Levi Jessu]). June i. 1829; 
William S. Crawford, April 19, 1831 ; George W. Powell, July 14, 1853; 
William W. Matlock, January 30, 1853; William McPhetridge, February 9, 
1857; Herman Smith, August 14, 1858; S. R. Craddick, March 30, 1861; 



.60 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Aaron Homan, October 30, 1866; Mary Davis, March 12, 1867; J. M. Gregg, 
Jr., March 17, 1869; C. F. Hall, May 14, 1877; A. H. Kennedy, March i, 
1883; A. P. Pounds, August 2, 1886; J. R. Williams, July 18, 1888; Martin 
Englehart, August 5, 1889; R. W. Wade, March 5, 1894; Alfred Welshans, 
February 18. 1898; Wilbur Masten, February 19, 1906; Charles P, Horna- 
^day, March 2=^, 1910; William A. King, March 10, 1914. 

The Danville postoffice is a second-class office, having six carriers and 
six rural routes. A postal sa\"ings department is also conducted. 

BANKS, 

While the Civil War was in progress the First National Bank of Dan- 
\ille was organized with $60,000 capital, September 24, 1863, under the new 
law of Congress enacted a few months before and entitled an ''Act to provide 
a national currency secured by a pledge of United States stocks, and to pro- 
vide for the circulation and redemption thereof," approved February 25, 
1863. The incorporators were: Samuel P. Foote, Simon T. Hadley, Chris- 
tion C. Nave, James T. Hadley, Archibald Alexander, Elisha Hobbs, Alfred 
Hunt, Jeremia Johnson, John Miles, Jediah Hussey, Jesse Hockett, Edmund 
R. Hadley, John Bishop, David G. Wilson, Allen Hess, James McMurry, 
Samuel S. Russell, Cyrus Hunt, Leander M. Campbell, Oliver P. Badger, 
John Hadley, Levi Pennington, Thomas Nichols, Josiah Garrison, Julius A. 
Jeger, Milton Lindley and Amiel Hunt. Simon T. Hadley was the first 
president and Samuel P. Foote the first cashier. The bank was authorized to 
commence business on December 11, 1863, and was the one hundred and 
fifty-second chartered bank in the United States. The bank opened its doors 
in a building a few doors south of its present site. At a later date it was 
moved to the Estep block, north of the court house. It moved to the present 
location upon the erection of the building in 1897. The present officers of the 
hank are: W. C. Osborne, president; F. J. Christie, cashier; Charles Z. Cook, 
assistant cashier. The present capital is $100,000; deposits, $350,000; sur- 
plus, $40,000. The bank charter has been twice renewed, once in 1883 and 
again in 1903. 

The Danville Trust Company was incorporated March 29, 1899, with a 
capital of $25,000. It was organized by Cyrus Osborne, Mord Carter, Thomas 
J. Miles, M. T. Hunter, William C. Osborne, E. R. Robards and Alva B. 
Smith. Cyrus Osborne was the first president; William C. Osborne, vice- 
president, and Mord Carter, secretary. The present officers are : Cyrus Os- 
borne, president.; Thomas J. Cofer, vice-president, and William C. Osborne, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 6r 

secretary. The capital stock is still $25,000; deposits, $80,000, and .-^iirphis. 
$7,000. The company was chartered in 1899. 

The Danville State Bank was organized in 1904 by a stock company. 
The officers of the bank at present are : S. H. Hall, president ; J. K. Little^ 
vice-president; O. M. Piersol, cashier; O. P. Humston, assistant cashier. The 
capital stock is $25,000; deposits, $160,000; surplus, $17,500. 

PUBLIC SCHOOLS OF DANVILLE. 

The Danville public schools graduated the first class in the year 1880. 
This class consisted of but one member, Belle Kennedy. Since that time there 
have been nearly three hundred and fifty graduated. The largest class was 
graduated in 1910, consisting of twenty-three members. Many of the gradu- 
ates have continued their studies in higher institutions of learning, but a 
majority have entered upon their life work without any other training than 
that given in the high school. The people of Danville have spared no ex- 
pense in giving the young people of the community the advantages enjoyed 
by the most favored in the state. 

The first brick school house in the county was built at Danville in 1829. 
The second free school, as it was called, was a two-story frame, situated 
on the lot across the street south from the old college building. This burned 
in the fall of 1872. The following year another school building was con- 
structed, but in 1878 fire destroyed it to such an extent that it had to be 
nearlv entirely rebuilt. The present high school building was completed in, 
1900. 

COURT HOUSE HISTORY. 

The first court house in Danville was constructed of peeled hickory logs 
and the jail, back of the present location of Thompson's jewelry store, was 
of the same material. In the year 1830 a second court house was built and 
was a square, brick building. The third court house was completed in the 
year 1862 and cost sixty thousand dollars. The building was considered a 
substantial one and of elegant architecture for the time. The first floor was 
taken up mainly by the county offices and on the second floor was the court 
room, considered one of the best in the state. The building was surmounted 
by two towers, upon one of which was an observatory. This court house per- 
formed good service for many years or until eight-thirty o'clock on the night 
of January 9, 19 12, when the whole roof collapsed, completely wrecking the 
upper floor of the building. Fortunately, it was an hour when the place was. 



62 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

deserted or there would have been fatalities. Court had been held that very 
day; also for many weeks noises of cracking had been heard, but unheeded. 

The county council held a meeting on Monday, January 22, 1912. for th: 
purpose of discussing the building of a new court house. There was no defi- 
nite action taken, due to two factions in the council and much difference of 
opinion. On February 3d, however, they met again and appropriated two 
hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars for the erection of a new court 
house. Bonds were ordered issued. The work of advertising for bids, etc., 
went on and the contract was awarded. Clarence Martindale is the architect 
of the new court house structure. The first thing done was the razing of the 
ruins of the old court house. This was done, most of the bricks being de- 
posited in the fill at the east end of Marion street. The corner stone for the 
new court house was laid on May 29, 19 13, with fitting ceremonies. 

The new court house, now well along in the process of construction, is 
to be one of the most efficient and beautiful in the state of Indiana. The 
house is constructed of Bedford oolitic stone and the best steel. The inside 
wainscoting and corridor floors are to be of marble. The court room is to 
have monolithic floors, art glass sky-light and ornamental plaster ceiling. 
The dimensions of the court house are one hundred and eleven by one hun- 
dred and forty-two by one hundred and thirteen feet and forty-eight feet in 
height. The two court rooms, the grand jury room and the county surveyor's 
office are on the third floor, the principal county offices are on the second 
■floor, and on the first floor are the minor offices, the county superintendent's 
office, rest rooms. Grand Army of the Republic room. The building is to be 
heated by steam and lighted by electricity. A modern ventilating system is 
installed and a vacuum cleaning apparatus. An electric elevator will run the 
entire height of the building. This building has a copper roof and is con- 
sidered absolutely fire-proof. The architecture is of the Renaissance style 
mainly, with features of other architectural designs. The natural lighting of 
the building is an important asset. P. H. McCormack Company, of Colum- 
bus, Indiana, are the contractors. 

THE JAIL. 

The present jail building in Danville was erected in the year 1869. In 
January, 1865, the county board of commissioners ordered the sheriff "to 
sell at public outcry to the highest bidder the old county jail, reserving all 
the iron and stone in said building to the county, also to sell the old fence 
around said house.'' This was done and it was ordered that Martin Gregg 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 63 

be appointed to examine jails in other counties and employ an architect to 
^ive a draft and estimated cost of such a building and report on the same. 
Pending the erection of the new jail the jury room in the north side of the 
old court house served the purpose of a bastile. The cost of the jail was 
approximately thirty thousand dollars. In 19 14 a new heating plant is 
being installed. 

SECRET SOCIETIES. 

Western Star Lodge No. 26, Free and Accepted Masons, at Danville, 
was organized under dispensation February 10, 1846, and the charter is dated 
May 30th following. James L. Hogan was the first worshipful master; 
J. D. Parker, senior warden, and William L. Matlock, junior warden. Col. 
Thomas Nichols, a pioneer justice of the peace, was the first man initiated 
into this lodge. This lodge now has a membership of about one hundred 
and seventy-five. 

Dan\ille Chapter No. 46, Royal Arch Masons, was chartered May 23, 
i860, with Reece Trowbridge as the first high priest. E. Singer was the 
first king and Jacob Fleece, scribe. The chapter has a present membership of 
one hundred. 

Colestock Council No. 26, Royal and Select Masters, at Danville, was 
organized under dispensation, August 24, 1868, and chartered in July of the 
following year. The council now has about seventy-five members. 

Danville Chapter No. 39, Order of the Eastern Star, was chartered 
in 1879, with T. S. Adams as worthy patron, Eliza M. Johnson as worthy 
matron, and Mary E. Cooper as assistant matron. There are fifty members 
of the Eastern Star now. 

Silcox Lodge No. 123, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, was organ- 
ized January 14, 1853, by John W. L. Matlock, Ohio Cleveland, R. H. 
Morehead, Theodore P. Hoy, George F, McGinnis, J. B. E. Reed and J. S. 
Harvey as charter members. John W. L. Matlock was the first noble grand ; 
H. S. McCormick, vice-grand ; William Astle}^ secretary ; D. G. Wilson, 
treasurer; J. G. Mulligan, outer guard; William Jeffers, inner guard; D. D. 
Hamilton, R. C. S. ]\Iaccoun, James H. Taylor, R. Cope, stewards. This 
lodge has a present membership of one hundred and fifty. 

Matilda Lodge No. 47, Daughters of Rebekah, at Danville, was char- 
tered February 24, 1871. 

Danville Lodge No. 48, Knights of Pythias, was organized June 12, 
J 874, with twenty-eight members. The first officers were : C. W. ^^'vnant, 



64 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

past commander; Thomas N. Jones, chancellor commander; Charles H. Dill^. 
vice-commander; W. H. Hess, prelate; D. B. Keleher, master-at-arms; Lee 
Hunt, master of exchequer; Washington Gregg, master of finance; J. C. 
Waterous, keeper of records and seal; J. T. Clark, inner guard; Jesse Cum- 
mins, outer guard. 

Tuscarora Tribe No. 49, Improved Order of Red Men, at Danville, was 
organized June 5, 1874, among the prominent members being E. M. Tinder, 
Henry Howell, W. T. Linn, James T. McCurdy, Aaron Hart, J W. Hart 
and James O. Parker. 

Application having been made in due form for the organization of a. 
Grand Army of the Republic post in Danville, a dispensation was granted 
and General James R. Carnahan, in company with a number of comrades 
from George H. Thomas Post, of Indianapolis, reported on the evening of 
mustering the post. The meeting was held in the court room and an or- 
ganization effected and officers elected. This was on April 27, 1883. Fifty- 
six comrades were mustered as charter members and this number quickly 
mounted to well over a hundred. The first officers included such men as :_ 
Alfred Welshans, commander; John Messier, and James J. Bell. Thomas J. 
Coffer, Daniel Kelleher, Charles W. Stewart, John W. Tinder, H. Hall, 
Leroy H. Kennedy, William H. Nichols and Stanley A. Hall. The roster of 
the post, taken in May, 1913, numbered forty-four men. 

The post is gradually growing smaller, each year many of the veterans- 
being called from the ranks by death. However, the post is active here and 
each year Memorial Day is sacredly observed. The Sunday schools. Central. 
Normal College and citizens generally unite with the post in the strewing of 
flowers and reviving the memories of the deceased comrades. 

PUBLIC PARK. 

Perhaps one of the most remarkable facts about Daville, considering, 
its size, is that the town boasts of a public park. Ground for this park was 
purchased in 191 3 at a cost of two hundred dollars an acre for twenty acres. 
The Commercial Club pushed this deal until the city decided to buy the- 
property. The city employed a landscape gardener, who has planted about 
two thousand trees and shrubs on the ground. A baseball diamond and. 
grandstand ha\e been constructed and this summer it is planned to obstruct 
the stream, which flows throught the grounds, and a bathing beach created. 




DANVILLE HIGH SCHOOL BLILDIXG 




HENDRICKS COUNTY JAIL 



CHAPTER VI. 



CLAY TOWNSHIP. 



TOPOGRAPHY. 

The land surface of Clay township is in most respects similar to the 
rest of the county. The township is one of the smaller ones and is drained 
by the three forks of Mill creek. The land is practically level, with slight 
valleys made by the streams, and the drainage, now aided by artificial means, 
is adequate. The quality of the land in this township is good. The farm- 
ers have managed, by skillful cultivation and intelligent study, to derive large 
profits from the soil and arc to be commended, especially for this work and 
progress. The St. Louis division of the Big Four railroad, the Vandalia. 
and the Terre Haute, Indianapolis & Eastern interurban line traverse the 
township and, supplemented with an excellent system of gravel and macadam 
roads, make the township strictly a modern one and a pleasurable location in 
which to live. 

ORGANIZATION. 

The township was formed by separating from the north end of Frank- 
lin township three tiers of sections of land and taking three sections off the 
southeast corner of Aiarion township, thereby giving Clay township an area 
of twenty- four square miles. This organization was executed b}' the board 
of county commissioners in the year 1845. 

The poll book of the first election, held at Springfield, in Clay town- 
ship, August 3, 1846, gives the names of one hundred and one voters. They 
were Peter Long, Wesley Hardwick, Joshua F. Huckings, Mordecai Samuels, 
Abraham West, Benjamin Pickett, Caleb Hunt, Thomas J. Hadley, Eras- 
mus Nichols, Milton Asher, Phineas Moon, Eli Hodson, Job Hadley, Henry 
Bland, Robert Harvey, Mencher Coe. John Candiff, John Harlan, John Gam- 
bold, Phineas Tomilson, Ransom Estes, Edward B. Estes, John Johnson, 
Mathias Alaster, Carver Benboel, Timothy Swain, Clark Hill, David Mastin, 
Henry Coats, James Wright, William Talbot, Hiram D. Jones, Elijah An- 
derson, Isaac Miracle, William H. Dalton, Harvey Stanley, Samuel Stanley, 
(5) 



66 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Francis Huckings, Edward Tomilson, Miles T. Richardson, Allen Pearson, 
James Pearson. George Tincher, Henry B. Goolman, Winson Yates, Jesse 
Turbeville. Jonathan Mendenhall, Hugh Mclvee, Harvey Richardson, Tandy 
Scott, Elijah Wright, Solomon I^nshton, Benjamin Gaeres, Joel Haggins, 
Eleazer Hunt, Jabez Watson, John Wright, Thomas C. Parker, Milton 
White, John Stanley, William S. Benbow, Charles Green, Robert Walker, 
Edward Newham, Jacob Workrider, Jesse Watson, Albert Hunt, John New- 
ham, William Mann, A. Edwards, Jesse M. Hackett, James Acres, Alfred 
Hunt, Ellis King, Henry Wise, Asahel Mann, William Tancher, Alexander 
Adams, Robert B. Stanley, Nathan Harvey, Blake Swain, William Hay- 
worth, John Harrison, Silas Dixon, William Benbow, Nathaniel Hadley, 
Jeremiah Smith. Eli Phillips, John Edwards, Samuel Phillips, Joseph Mor- 
ris, Wesley Pearson, Elihu Dixon, Elam Benbow, Price F. Hall, James Hay- 
worth, John Hancock, William Cosner, Joel W. Hodson and William Beech- 
ardson. 

FIRST SETTLEMENT, 

The first settlement in Clay township was made near the year 1825. 
The exact identity of the first settler is not known, but among the families 
which came prior to 1832 were those of Obadiah, George and John Tincher, 
John Hadley, Joel and Jesse Hodson, William Benbow, Doctor Kersey, 
Newbry Hunt, Abraham West, Nicholas Osburn and George Hancock. 

PECKSBURG. 

The village of Pecksburg was named in honor of the first president of 
the Vandalia railroad. The village is located near the east line of Clay 
township on section 31. The plat of Pecksburg was officially recorded on 
May 24, 1853. Some of the earliest settlers in the neighborhood of Pecks- 
burg were David Wreitzel, John Sheerer and Daniel Wreitzel. They settled 
two miles south of the present village in a very early day and constructed a 
log church of the Lutheran denomination. This afterwards was abandoned 
and a frame built in Pecksburg, which still stands, about sixty years old. It 
is not used at present, however. Abraham West had a grist mill near here 
in the early days, but sold out to John Sheerer. When the Vandalia was 
built, through the village, Sheerer opened the first store, having a general 
assortment of goods. 

The village at present is very small, comprising but one general store, 
in charge of Mr. Wreitzel, a descendant of David and Daniel Wreitzel, and 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 6'] 

a few houses. The Terre Haute, IndianapoHs & Eastern interurban line, 
Brazil division, and the Vandalia railroad pass through here. 

AMO. 

Two miles west of Pecksburg, on sections 2. 3. 34 and 35, is the town 
of Amo, one of the voting places of the township. This village was laid 
out in 1850 by Joseph Morris and was originally Morristown. The first 
house in this village was constructed by William Tomlinson. The present 
town has a population of about three hundred people and is incorporated, 
this having been voted in 19 13. The board of trustees is composed of G. 
G. Hunter. J. S. Carter, H. C. Summers; C. C. Burch is clerk and W. A. 
Barker is marshal. The town of Amo bears the appearance of prosperity 
and will in all probabilities have a marked growth in the next few years. The 
incorporation has been a good thing for the town and the business men 
have planned to make the most of it. 

The First National Bank, of Amo, was organized on January 20, 1906, 
by John Kendall and others. J. N. Phillips was the first president of the bank ; 
H. C. Summers, the first vice-president; John Kendall, cashier; W. H. 
White and E. B. Owen, second and third vice-presidents. The capital stock 
is $25,000, the deposits amounted to $88,168 and the surplus is $5,000. The 
present officers are as follows: E. B. Owen, president; George W. Christie, 
vice-president ; J. N. Phillips, cashier ; Milber Kendall, assistant cashier. This 
bank opened for business on July 23, 1906. 

Amo Lodge No. 701, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, has a present 
membership of over one hundred. The lodge was instituted in 1899. Amo 
Tribe No. 503, Improved Order of Red Men, has seventy-five members. 

RENO. 

Reno is a small village located in Clay township on section 30. The 
village originated with the building of the Indiana & St. Louis railroad, now 
the Big Four, in 1870. The official plat of the village was recorded on 
December 10, 1870. The town in 1914 is exceedingly small and with no 
industrial activity. 

HADLEY. 

The village of Hadley, in Clay township, is a railroad station on section 
23. The official plat was recorded March 28, 1872. 



68 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

COATESVILLE. 

It is unforlunate that more of the early history of the town of Coates- 
\-ille is not obtainable. Even the official plat of the town has been lost. The 
town, however, was orginated sometime in the late sixties and quickly be- 
came a prosperous community. The town, by the census of 1910, had a 
population of four hundred and seventy-two people, but this is conceded to 
have grown to nearly six hundred in 19 14. 

The town was incorporated in the year 1909 and the present officers are: 
Trustees, Alarvin Hunt, R. C. Knight and James Davidson; clerk, Clarence 
Shortridge; marshal, O. E. McCammick. The town is supplied with elec- 
tricity from the Terre Haute, Indianapolis & Eastern Traction Company. 

The business houses and residences of the town of Coatesville are at- 
tractive and orderly, in fact, to the visitor the town presents an aspect of 
civic pride and a progressive community. Everything is modern, the streets 
are well cared for and trade is excellent. The citizens claim that there is 
not a poor merchant in the town. A new high school was constructed in 
191 1 and is a model of its kind. 

The Coatesville Bank was organized in May, 1902, by Messrs. Beck, 
Moffet and Reeds. It was reorganized in 1906 as the First National Bank, 
commencing business on January i, 1907. The first officers were: W. T. 
Beck, president; F. P. Moffett. vice-president and James M. Reeds, cashier. 
The hrst capital stock was $6,000, the present capital is $25,000, with 
$125,000 in deposits and $8,500 surplus. W. T. Beck is the president in 
1914; Jesse Masten, vice-president, and C. D. Knight, cashier. The bank was 
chartered in 1906. 

Coatesville Lodge No. 357, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, was or- 
ganized November 27, 1870, with the following first members: Joel T. Tin- 
der, Wallace Snowden, William Lakin, William Newkirk, Alva W. San- 
ders. There are now one hundred and twenty-five members. 

Coatesville Lodge No. 391, Knights of Pythias, has one hundred and 
twenty members. 

Coatesville Lodge No. 695, Free and Accepted Masons, has fifty-three 
members. 



CHAPTER VII. 



EEL RIVER TOWNSHIP. 



TOPOGRAPHY. 

Eel River township is in the extreme northwest corner of Hendricks 
county. It is bounded on the north by Boone county, on the east by Union 
and Center townships, on the south by Marion township, on the west by 
Putnam and Montgomery counties. The natural drainage of the most of 
this township is excellent; the east and west sides are rather flat and not 
adequately drained by the streams, although the farmers have at this time pro- 
vided artificial means which remedy this deficiency. In the southwest corner 
of this township are found many high elevations, some of the hills below the 
juncture of Rock Branch and Eel River rising one hundred feet above the 
bed of the stream and now covered with a luxuriant second growth of tim- 
ber. Five good-sized streams enter the township near the southwest corner, 
merging into Eel river. The picturesqueness of these stream valleys, the 
rich, wooded banks rising from them and the well-arranged farm lands 
lying behind, supplies beauty of landscape unequaled in the county. It is the 
garden sport of Hendricks. The land in this localitv is uniformly good and 
is well adapted to any kind of cultivation. 

The Ben-Hur division of the Terre Haute. Indianapolis & Eastern 
line crosses the northeast corner of this township. 

EARLY SETTLEMENT. 

In the spring of 1824 the first white settlers came to Eel River town- 
ship. They were Noah Bateman and Reuben Claypool and they located a 
mile south of North Salem. They were followed in the fall of that year by 
John Claypool and John S. Woodward. Among the others who located in 
this township, previous to 1830, were Janies Trotter. Henry Bales, J. and 
Martha Page, John P. Benson, Robert Covey, Enoch Davis and his sons, 
AVilliam, Frank and Jesse, William Dewitt, Dr. Collins, Andrew Clifton, 



70 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Tames Campbell, Mr. Crum and the Penningtons. John Benson built the first 
mill in the county on Rock Branch in the year 1826. This structure lasted 
but a few years when j\Ir. Crum built a mill on Eel River, not far from the 
site of the former mill. About the year 1830 a distillery was started near 
Crum's mill. This was the first in the county. 

The date of the organization was somewhere near the year 1828, four 
years after the organization of the county. 

THE BOULDER CLUB. 

The citizens of Eel River, at an early date, passed what was known as 
a "stay law," in defense of their property, which was often taken and sold 
by the constable. Whenever the constable advertised any property for sale 
the club W'ould meet on the night before and carry a number of boulders 
which they piled on the ground as a notice to the constable not to offer the 
property for sale. 

FIRST ELECTION. 

The first general election held in Eel River township was on August 
7, 1826. The men who voted at this election were Abel Pennington, Lewis 
Benson, Jacob Shoemaker, William Turner, Jacob Crum, A. Jones, James 
Fowler, Jesse Turner, John \\'arker, Hampton Pennington, Daniel Turner, 
John Woodward, John Turner, David Evans, Edward Turner, William Hin- 
ton, David Claypool, W. Jones, Christian Hartman, John Fowler, Noah 
Bateman, Y. L. Huggs, John Claypool, Alva Benson, Little Huggs and Will- 
iam Fowler. 

THE TOWNSHIP TODAY. 

To describe Eel River township of today the same words used in the 
account of the other civil divisions might, be used. The township has no 
large settlements, but has developed in agricultural lines during the past 
score of vears until now it occupies a marked position in the county. The 
Cincinnati, Hamilton and Dayton railroad traverses the township, east and 
v^^est, near the center and the Peoria division of the Big Four and the Ben-Hur 
interurban line cross near the north part of the township, providing direct 
intercourse with the chief markets of the state. The schools have grown and 
become modern in e^■ery respect, following the new' thought of consolidation. 
The people of the township have directed a large part of their eftorts to the 
betterment of the roads. The old dirt road, with its sloughs and dangerous 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 7I 

holes, has been replaced by excellent gravel and macadam highways. The 
farms are cultivated according to the latest practices employed over the 
country and along with care for proper cultivation has become a pride in the 
appearance of the field, the equipment and the residence. Many a farm home 
viewed by the traveler in Eel River township is impressive and suitable for 
the largest cities. 

NORTH SALEM. 

Xorth Salem is the only village in Eel River township. It was laid out 
in 1835 by John and David Claypool and John S. Woodward. The town 
has always been a prosperous one, even from the beginning, a new life having 
been given by the building of the railroad, now the Cincinnati, Hamilton & 
Dayton railroad. The United States census report for 1910 gives the popu- 
lation of North Salem as five hundred and sixty-nine, which number had 
grown proportionately larger in the past five years. 

The place was incorporated as a town in May, 1899, and town officers 
elected. The offices in 1914 are filled as follows: Trustees, J. H. Page, Harry 
Seaton and Harry Dean ; clerk. Smith Davis ; marshal, \'irgil Robbins. 
About ten years ago the town installed an acetylene plant, for residence and 
street lighting. This public utility was recently improved and enlarged and 
is now worth four thousand dollars. 

The North Salem Bank was organized in 1891 by Pritchard & Son, 
of Illinois, and in 1893 the business was purchased by the present owners 
and has since been controlled by home people. C. W. Davis is president 
of the bank. G. B. Davis, cashier, and J. B. Fleece, assistant cashier. The 
average deposits amount to one hundred and fifty thousand dollars. 

North Salem Lodge No. 142, Free and Accepted Masons, was chartered 
on May 25, 1853, and was the first secret order in the town. This lodge 
is in good condition now and has a membership of ninety. 

North Salem Lodge No. 158, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, was 
chartered on April 15, 1865, with the following first members: \\'illiam 
Adair, John S. Woodward, James White, John M. Hensley. James Shakles 
and H. W'. Hackley. This lodge today has a membership of one hundred and 
fifty-eight. 

North Salem Lodge No. 291, Knights of Pythias, has at present sixty- 
five members. This lodge was organized about ten years ago. 

Joe Fleece Post No. 383, Grand Army of the Republic, at North Salem, 
was mustered, in September. 1884, with ten charter members. This post 
is not active at the present time. 



CHAPTER VHT. 



FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP. 



TOPOGRAPHY. 

In the extreme southwest corner of the count}- is located Frankhn town- 
ship, containing parts of township 14 north, ranges i and 2 west. It is 
bounded on the north by Clay township, on the east by Liberty, on the south 
by Morgan and Putnam counties, and on the west by Putnam county. The 
soil level is comparatively flat in the northwestern and southeastern portions, 
but in the central part it assumes a rolling character. Mill creek and its tribu- 
taries drain the township in the central and west and Mud creek drains the 
southeastern part. These streams are small but of great value to the land. 
For cultivation the soil of Franklin township is unsurpassed in Hendricks 
county, especially for corn. It has a rich, alluvial quality, free from sand and 
alkali, and is of high productiveness. 

EARLY SETTLEMENT AND EVENTS. 

Judge Nathan Kirk was the first settler in the township of Franklin. 
In 1820 he located on Mill creek, where it was crossed by the old Terre 
Haute trail, and in this place he kept a sort of tavern, a resting place for the 
weary traveler. Jeremiah Stiles, the founder of Stilesville, was the next 
settler of whom there is any account. He came in 1823. He was followed 
shortly by the following: John Swart, John and Isaac Wilcox, John Eslin- 
ger, David Orsborn and Jacob Reese. 

The date of the organization of the township is in dou1)t, but it is certain 
that it was very shortly after the organization of the county. Jere Stiles 
was the first justice of the peace. Samuel W'Mcks was the first merchant in 
the township, in Stilesville, which had been laid off in 1830, and Doctor 
Mahan was the first physician. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 73 

FIRST ELECTION. 

At Stilesville, on August i. 1831, was held the first general election of 
the township. Forty voters were registered on the poll books. Their names 
follow : William Shipley, Jonathan Sparks, Joseph Petty, Jacob Reese, Jere- 
miah Stiles, James Kelly. John Brown, George H. Keller, George Morris,- 
George Hancock, Henry Reese, \\^illiam Thomas, Peter Pearson, Thomas 
Wood, Edward Shipley, Samuel ^^'ick, Daniel Austin, Lorenzo D. Cleghorn, 
James Walls, Isaac Odle, \\^illiam Scott, Charles Smith, Silas Rustin. Will- 
iam Wilcox, Absalom Snoddy, Samuel Gerber. ATonroe Cleghorn. Joseph 
Cleghorn, William Snoddy, James Pritchett, Eli Lee. Frederick Cosner. 
William Becknell. Joshua Rustin, James Bray, James Wiece, John Hancock, 
Silas Bryant, Nicholas Osborn and Garry Morris. 

The vote at this election was counted by James Walls and Silas Bryant, 
as judges, with Thomas Wood and John Hancock as clerks, and Jeremiah 
Stiles as inspector. 

Until the election of 1856 Franklin township was very strongly Whig 
in sentiment, then became Republican. The Democrats have recently be- 
come the strongest party in the township. 

THE TOWNSHIP IN I914. 

To give a proper description of the present Franklin township would 
require much more space than is available here. In a word, the township 
has become one of the best in the county and her institutions, schools, 
churches, commercial activities, etc., have grown rapidly in the past twenty 
years or so. Railroad facilities are poor in this township and the chief 
town, Stilesville, is entirely removed from the steel lines of transit. Noth- 
withstanding this deficiency, the excellent roads and the automobile have en- 
al^led the farmer and business man to maintain adequate communication 
with the rest of the county. And, too. the telephone, both local and long 
distance, ha\-e been a great factor in the growth of Franklin township. 

STILESVILLE. 

Stilesville was laid off as a village in 1828 and a small settlement start- 
ed. The opening of the national road through this county, in 1830, passing 
directly through Stilesville. made the town of some importance in the early 
day, but now the place has been forced to the rear by the absence of either 



74 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

railroad or interiirban line. Passengers are transferred to Amo, four miles 
northeast, in order to reach the steel lines. 

At first, Stilesville was a stopping place for emigrants bound for the 
West and it became quite popular. The town has since kept pace with modern 
progress and now presents a neat and attractive appearance. It is not an 
incorporated town. Among the new features of the town is the new high 
school building, constructed in 19 12 at a cost of twenty thousand dollars. 
Good accommodations may be secured in Stilesville; in fact, in most re.-'pects 
it has overcome the handicap of being without railroad facilities. 

The Citizens State Bank was organized in the year 191 3 by a stock com- 
pany. It succeeded the bank owned by E. R. Robards. The first officers 
were John E. Hicks, president; B. W. Anderson, vice-president; Chester G. 
Pike, cashier. These officers are the same now, except the office of vice-presi- 
dent, which is filled by Charles W. Robards. The bank was chartered May 
27, 1913. The capital stock is $25,000; the deposits, $65,000 and surplus, 
$2,200. 

Larabee Lodge No. 131, Free and Accepted Masons, was organized at 
Stilesville in May, 1852. This lodge is still in existence and has good sup- 
port, having sixty-five members. 

Stilesville Lodge No. 538, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, was 
organized fifteen years ago, and now has one hundred and twenty-five 
members. 

Enoch Alexander Post No. 265, Grand Army of the Republic, at Stiles- 
ville, was mustered in the fall of 1833 with thirteen charter members. This- 
post is not active at the present time, many of the comrades having passed 
away. 



CHAPTER IX. 



GUILFORD TOWNSHIP. 



TOPOGRArHY. 

Guilford township is situated in the southeast corner of Hendricks 
county; is bounded on the north by Washington township, on the east by" 
Marion county, on the south by Morgan county and on the west by Liberty 
township. White Lick creek fiows through the central portion, the East fork 
thereof and Clark's creek through the east side, and the West fork of 
White Lick, with a small tributary, across the west side. This network of 
streams supplies perhaps the best natural drainage system of any township 
in the county. The water adds greatly to the value of the land also; the 
uplands are rolling and the stream valleys are fertile and of high productive 
qualit}^ Walnut, poplar and maple timber was at one time thick over this 
township, but this has been reduced by the encroachments of agriculture to a 
very small per cent, of the original. 

SETTLEMENT. 

Guilford township was the first in the county to be entered by white 
settlers. This was in the year 1820. In that year Samuel Herriman, James 
Dunn, Bat Ramsey, Harris Bay, John W^ Bryant and George Aloore settled 
on White Lick, south of Plainfield. near the Morgan county line. Here they 
set up their cabins, cleared ground and raised a few small crops of corn and 
potatoes. In the spring of 1821 Noah Kellum, Thomas Lockhart. Mr. 
Plummer and Felix Balzer settled on the East fork, and Matthew Lowder, 
Jesse Hockett and Robert Tomlinson on White Lick, south of Plainfield. In 
the spring of 1822 Jeremiah Hadley, Jonathan Hadley and David Carter 
settled on adjoining lands on the hills immediately east of the present town 
of Plainfield and were the first to locate in that neighborhood. In the same 
year James Downard settled on the state farm. In 1824 Guilford township 
contained more people than all the other townships combined. The Friends 
were the majority of the early settlers and to this da}' this religious denom- 



yd HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ination is strong in the township. The civil division was named in honor of 
Guilford county. North Carolina, by Samuel Jessup, due to the fact, doubt- 
less, that a large number of the emigrants came from that place. 

FIRST ELECTIONS. 

Samuel Jessup was the first justice of the peace in Guilford township 
and in Hendricks county. He was elected in the autumn of 1822, under the 
jurisdiction of Morgan county, to which Hendricks county was attached for 
two years for judicial purposes before its organization. Mr. Jessup was 
elected by the first political campaign in the county. John and Samuel Jessup, 
on East fork, were also candidates, and Gideon Wilson, near Shiloh. There 
■were fifteen voters below and eight in Wilson's vicinity. A caucus was held 
in the Fairfield neighborhood, and it was found that there would be no 
election if all the candidates remained in the field, and as Samuel had the 
most votes it was decided that John should withdraw from the race, which 
he did, and Samuel was chosen. 

The poll book of the first general election held in Guilford township, on 
August 7. 1826, at the house of John Jessup, gives a list of forty-two voters, 
which is manifestly incomplete, namely: Timothy Jessup, Thomas Lock- 
hart, James McClure, John White. Noah Kellum, Isaac Sanders, Harmon 
Hiatt, Adin Ballard, Benjamin Sanders, Henry Bland, Robert Tomlinson, 
Joseph Chandler, John Hiatt, Elihu Jackson, Joseph Ballard, Charles Rey- 
nolds, Pratt W. Jessup, Joseph Jessup, Joel Jessup, John Hawkins. Lee 
Jessup, Abijah Pinson, John Jessup, Joseph P. Jessup, Levi Cook, Henry 
Reynolds, Timothy H. Jessup, James C. Tomlinson. Joseph Cloud. John 
Lemon, John Carson, David Stutesman. James Ritter, William Merritt, 
Solomon Edmundson, John Ballard, David Ballard. Robert Lemon. Joseph 
Hiatt, Jesse Kellum, Thomas R. Ballard and John Harris. Guilford town- 
ship has always been Republican in politics, following from the support of 
the Whig party. 

GUILFORD IN I914. 

Because of the location of Plainfield. the second town in the county, 
Guilford township is perhaps next to the leading, if not the leading, civil 
division in the county. It has the advantage in not only having a good 
population, but in having exceptional land, rich and fertile, and capable of 
producing record crops. The farmers are of the 1)est class in the state and 
are all in a prosperous condition. The appearance of the farms, the iKiildings 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 'JJ 

and the residences is the strongest testimony to this fact. Much attention 
has been given to the roads of the township. Gravel highways, and many 
macadamized, form a network over the division. Two railroads and two 
interurban lines cross the county, all going into Indianapolis. 

PLAINFIELD. 

The town of Plainfield is the second town in the county in size. It was 
laid out by Elias Hadley and Levi Jessup in the year of 1839. Thomas 
Worth built the first frame house in the town and Worth & Brothers were 
the first merchants. 

In 1839 Plainfield was incorporated as a town, and the officers of the 
election made the following report : 

"W^e, the undersigned president and clerk chosen and qualified accord- 
ing to law, do hereby certify that we did, on the morning of the 25th of i\Iay, 
1839, lay off the said town into five districts, to-wit : That the town lots 
lying east of Center street and north of the national road shall be known as 
the first district; that the lots lying east of Center street south of the national 
road shall be known as the second district ; that the lots lying between Center 
and Mills street south of the national road, shall be known as the third 
district; that the town lots lying between Center and Mills streets, north of 
the national road, shall be known as the fourth district; and that the town 
lots lying west of Mills street shall be known as the fifth district. 

"And we do further certify that David G. Worth, Eli K. Caviness, 
James M. Long, Andrew Prather and James M. Blair were duly elected 
trustees of the town of Plainfield according to law. 

"David G. Worth, President. 

"Attest: Isaac Osborn, Clerk." 

At this election the following twent}-three persons voted : Daniel Bar- 
ker, David G. Worth, M. G. Taylor. David Barker, Jesse Hocket, James ]M. 
Blair, A. C. Logan, A. Prather, Luther Sikes. James M. Long. James T. 
Downard, Eli K. Caviness, M. G. Corlew, Joel Hodgin. Muling Miller, 
Thomas J. Worth. Benjamin Lawrence, Di\id Phillips. \\ C. Gitchens. John 
Shelley. Isaac Osborn. Isaac Holton and \\'illiam Osborn. These were among 
the prominent first settlers of the town of Plainfield. This incorporation 
charter was later given up, due to unsuccessful attempts at town government. 
Township rule was considered to be the best. However, on June 25, 1904, 
th'" tovn of Plainfield was again incorporated as a town. In the second in- 



•78 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

corporation the first officers were: M. M. Fraser, J. A. Johnson and John L. 
Gunn. trustees; Charles R. Harvey, clerk; Jacob Wickliff, marshal. The 
present town officers are as follows: Joseph Prnitt. Charles Harvey and 
E. E. Watson, trustees; R. M. Hadley, clerk and treasurer; Frank Fields, 
marshal. 

The Plainfield water works is a municipally-owned plant, built in 19 13, 
at a cost of eighteen thousand dollars. Electricity is su]jplied by the Danville 
Light, Heat and Power Company. 

THE PRESENT TOWN. 

The town of Plainfield had a population in 19 10 of one thousand three 
hundred and three. The town has the appearance of a much larger city; the 
residences are commodious and of pleasing architecture and the Inisiness 
section has the air of prosperity and civic excellence. The town is reached 
by the Vandalia and the Terre Haute, Indianapolis & Eastern lines and much 
commercial and social intercourse is held with the city of Indianapolis and 
other towns on the lines. 

The Citizens' State Bank of Plainfield was organized in 18S9 by George 
W. Bell. It was chartered in that year and in 1909 this charter was renewed. 
The first officers of the l^ank were: Harlan Hadley, president; John A. 
Miles, vice-president ; George W. Bell, cashier. William Lewis, Ezra H. Cox, 
T. F. Roberts, David Hadley and John R. \A^eer were associated with the 
institution. The present officers are: John L. Gunn. president; John M. 
Brown, vice-president; Emil B. Mills, cashier; Ralph B. Hornaday, assistant 
-cashier. The capital stock is $25,000; deposits, $145,000; surplus and un- 
divided profits, $30,000. 

Plainfield Lodge No. 286, Free and Accepted Masons, was organized 
October 21, 1862, with the following officers: A.mos Easterling, worshipful 
master; Caleb Easterling, senior warden; Amos Alderson, junior warden; 
Madison Osborn, secretary; Carey Regan, treasurer; N. Y. Parsons, senior 
deacon; William D. Cooper, junior deacon; Thomas Powell, tyler. This 
lodge is now Plainfield Lodge No. 653, and has a good membership. 

McCarty Lodge No. 233, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, at Plain- 
field, is over forty years old. They now have a membership of one hundred 
and sixty. " 

Plainfield Lodge No. 50. Knights of Pythias, has a membership of two 
hundred and is very prosperous. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 79 

There is also a tribe of the Improved Order of Red ^len and a camp of 
the Modern Woodmen of America in the town. 

Virgil H. Lyon Post No. 186, Grand Army of the Republic, at Plain- 
lield, was chartered June 11, 1883, with forty members. This post is not 
active at the present time, due to the decease of so many members. 

PLAINFIELD PUBLIC LIBRARY. 

The Plainfield library is a partial realization of the dreams and desires 
of some of the women of Plainfield. Feeling the need of such an institution 
in the town and believing an honest effort to establish such a means of direct- 
ing and cultivating the literary tastes of the young and satisfying the de- 
mands of the old would be rewarded by success, the Woman's Reading Club 
asked the local Woman's Christian Temperance Union and the Friday Club 
to enter into an association for the above purpose. A corporation was formed 
and a board of trustees appointed. With these organizations as charter mem- 
bers, the association membership was increased by adding the name of any 
person in the township who gave a dollar or more in money or books. Dona- 
tions in both were solicited, with the result that in a short time the library 
■opened with about four hundred volumes and money to buy more. 

The opening took place in June, 1901, and work began in a front room 
of a private residence on Main street, with Mrs. Edward Lawrence as librar- 
ian. She served until the fall of 1903, when failing health compelled her to 
resign, and she was succeeded by Miss Melissa Carter. 

THE INDIANA BOYS' SCHOOL. 

Just a mile from Plainfield is located the Indiana Boys' School. It is a 
iDeautiful place, well kept, and an admirable home for the class of boys sent 
within its grounds. This school was established by the Legislature of Indiana 
in 1867, under the name of "The House of Refuge for Juvenile Offenders." 
In 1883 this name was changed to "The Indiana Reform School for Boys," 
and in 1903 to the present title, "The Indiana Boys' School." The institution 
is governed by a bi-partisan board of control of four members appointed by 
the governor for a term of four years. The present board is : Harry T. 
Schloss, president; Joseph B. Homan, of Danville, vice-president; Guv H. 
Humphreys, treasurer, and George Webster. Jr., secretary. Guy C. Hanna 
is superintendent of the institution. 

Boys are received on commitments from the courts of the state between 



8u HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

the ages of eight and seventeen. On a general charge of incorrigibihty or 
delinquency, bovs are received between ten and seventeen and on a criminal 
charge between eight and sixteen. All boys are retained here until they 
reach the age of twenty-one years, unless sooner released by the board of 
control under general rules. At present these rules are such that with good 
conduct a boy may gain his release on parole in eighteen months. The aver- 
age time is a little under two years. Boys may be returned to the institution 
at any time for the violation of their parole while under twenty-one years of 
age. A statute proposed by the executive officers of the institution was 
enacted by the Legislature of 1913, giving the board of control the right to 
finally discharge any boy over the age of eighteen years. Under this law- 
six hundred and one boys already on parole have been discharged. 

The present number of inmates, which has remained nearly stationary 
for the past year, is about five hundred and sixty. One hundred of these are 
colored boys. The institution had, four years ago, six hundred and ninety- 
nine boys. The falling ofl: has been due to the overcrowded condition of the 
school and the pressure exerted on the courts to hold boys out as long as 
possible. 

The ordinary capacity of the institution is four hundred and twenty- 
six. A new building for housing purposes, Washington Barracks, is now 
under construction and will accommodate eighty boys. It will replace an old 
building. A new school house is being constructed also, named Charlton 
school, in honor of Major T. J. Charlton, superintendent of the school for 
twentv-one years. The institution is supported entirely by direct appropria- 
tion from the Legislature. In 1910 the total maintenance co.t was $113.- 
284.74: in iqii, $107,164.81; in 1912, $102,224.63; in 1913, $100,583.66. 

The purpose of the institution is the reformation of criminal and incorri- 
eible bovs. School is maintained the year round. The course covers the 
eight grades of the common school system. Two graduations are held each 
year, spring and fall. Sixteen boys were graduated in Se])tember, 191 3. 
During the twelve months each grade is given a two-weeks vacation out of 
doors. A director of music and a physical director are included in the teach- 
ing force. The schools are in charge of a school principal, who is an exper- 
ienced school man. 

The institution maintains the following shops and trades: Manual 
training, printing, carpenter, blacksmith, shoe shop, plumbing, tinshop, bak- 
ery, laundry, barber, tailor, paint shop, florist, farm and garden and tele- 
graphy. All the furniture of the institution is built at the manual training 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 8l 

shop. The printing office does all of the job vv'ork for the institution and 
issues monthly and weekly publications. The ordinary repairs of the institu- 
tion are kept up by the carpenter, painting, plumbing, blacksmith and tin- 
smith forces. The garden produces a large variety of vegetables for the in- 
stitution's use. An orchard of twenty-five acres produces five thousand 
bushels of apples yearly. These are all consumed by the boys. The farm, 
of three hundred acres, produces all the feed used by the institution and a 
large quantity of wheat per year, which is milled into flour. This year's crop 
of wheat amounted to over eighteen hundred bushels and last year's corn 
crop to five thousand bushels. 

The institution owns five hundred and twenty-seven acres of land and 
has fifty-four buildings. The place is heated by steam and is lighted by elec- 
tricity produced at the institution's central power plant. It has its own water 
works system, equipped with fine, pure water wells pumped by electric 
pumps. The power plant also supplies steam for cooking and for the steam 
laundry. It has a capacity for nine hundred horse power. 

The officers, including everybody employed, number sixty. These are 
all appointed by the superintendent and are subject to dismissal at his pleas- 
ure. The present board of control started two years ago, with the erection 
of the new chapel, to gradually rebuild the entire institution. The plan of 
housing in the future will include barracks, cottages and buildings, with single 
rooms for the boys. 

CENTRAL ACADEMY. 

The first school taught in the Central Academy at Plainfield was in 
1 88 1 -2. This school was originated and supported by four c[uarterly meet- 
ings of the Friends' church, Plainfield, Fairfield, White Lick and Danville,, 
until the year 1912, when the support of the school was transferred to the 
Plainfield quarterly meeting alone. It is a commissioned high school with a 
four-year course, ha\'ing now thirty pupils and three teachers, including 
Simon A^. Hester, the principal. The old building was burned in 1905 and 
in the next year a new one was constructed at a cost of ten thousand dollars. 
The first building was a two-story brick, with four rooms above and one 
below; the new one is the same, with the addition of a basement 



(^>) 



CHAPTER X. 



LIBERTY TOWNSHIP. 



TOPOGRAPHY. 

Liberty township is the middle division of the three southern townships, 
being bounded on the north by Center and AA'ashington townships, on the 
east by Guilford, on the south by Morgan county and on the west by Franklin 
and Clay. There are nearly forty-nine square miles within the area, in 
townships 14 and 15 north, range i east and i west. It is the largest of the 
twelve townships in the county. 

The ground level in the north and east parts is high and rolling, while 
the southwestern part at one time was low and swamp, but is now made into 
valuable land by the judicious system of drainage established. West fork of 
White Lick crosses the northeast corner of the township and Mud creek rises 
in the north central part and passes out near the southwestern corner, thus 
affording adequate outlots for successful drainage of the township. 

EARLY LIFE. 

About two miles east of the present town of Belleville, on the West fork 
of White Lick, in October, 1822, the first settlement was made in the town- 
ship by William and Thomas Hinton, James Thompson and Robert AIc- 
Cracken. William Pope and his son, James N., who was then sixteen years 
old, came in the spring of 1823, which year also brought into the township 
George Matlock, James R. Barlow, Samuel Hopkins, William Brown, Will- 
iam Ballard, David Demoss, John Cook, ]\Ioses Crawford. John Hanna, 
Thomas Cooper, George Coble and Jonathan Pitts. William Hinton was the 
first teacher in the township and county, in the fall of 1823. in a school house 
which had been built that fall, one-half mile south of Cartersburg. Thomas 
Hinton was the first justice of the peace and A\^illiam Pope, a Baptist minis- 
ter, did the first preaching. He organized the first Baptist church in Hen- 
dricks county, in his own home, in the late months of the year 1823. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 83 

The first brick dwelling house in the county was built in 1830 for Jesse 
Cook, just south of Belleville, by Joseph V. Pope and William Hinton. The 
act authorizing the organization of Hendricks county designated the house 
of William Ballard, which was on the old Terre Haute trail, south of Belle- 
ville, as the place of holding the courts, but William Ballard died before the 
county was formally organized and George Matlock, who kept tavern on this 
trail a mile east of Ballard's, laid off a town which he called Hillsboro, and 
made a strong effort to get the county seat located there. He failed in this 
and met his death in 1825 as the result of a combat with his brother-in-law. 
Consequently, the Hillsboro project was a failure. 

A pioneer's view. 

Joshua Marshall, one of the earlier settlers of Liberty township, wrote 
the following prior to his death, of his experience in coming to this new 
country : 

'Tn the autumn of 1826 my father, William Marshall, of Surrey county. 
North Carolina, emigrated to Indiana and settled in the south part of Hen- 
dricks county, T being then in my nineteenth year. Evan Davis, my brother- 
in-law, with his family, came at the same time and settled nearby. At that 
time most of the land belonged to the government and settlements were 
scattering. We frequently went as far as five miles to help each other raise 
our log cabins and stables. A few settlers had preceded us, Edward and 
Joseph Hobson. William Rushton, John Cook, and sons, Levi, Jesse and 
Stephen, with their families, Edmond Cooper, Jefferson Matlock, Rev. \\'ill- 
iam Pope, Thomas Irons, Judge Little, William Herron, William Townsend, 
Joshua Hadley, Bowater Bales and others. 

"Not having saw mills, we felled a tall gray ash and cut it into four by 
six lengths, split out puncheons, dressed the ends to a uniform thickness and 
then laid them on sleepers. They were jointed with saw and ax and made a 
good floor. We split out clapboards for roofing and door shutters. We had 
plenty of elbow room and were anxious for our neighbors to help build our 
cabins and roll logs so as to get them out of the way, in order to raise a little 
corn for our bread and to feed our stock. We were mosth' poor, yet con- 
tented, and looked forward to better days and more conveniences. We were 
all neighborly and kind to each other. 

"Danville had been laid out into lots and a few cabins were being built. 
David Matlock and others had settled nearby and were opening farms. 
Religious privileges were scarce, not a church or school house, to my knowl- 



84 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

edge, being then in the county. The Friends had formed a society and wor- 
shipped in a log house near Mooresville, in Morgan county. Rev. Pope, a 
Baptist minister, then living near where Cartersburg now is, preached fre- 
quently in his ow^n house to attentive, though small, audiences ; and we were 
glad thus to meet, hear preaching, and form each other's acquaintance. In 
the spring of 1829 Joseph Tarkington, a Methodist minister, established a 
preaching- place at the house of Edmond Cooper, then residing on Mud creek, 
at the crossing of the Indianapolis and Terre Haute road (Terre Haute 
trail), and there a class was formed of six members, Evan and Rebecca 
Davis, Mother Cooper and two daughters and Hannah Snodgrass. Shortly 
after this, in June, 1829, at a two-days" meeting held in Putnam county, I 
joined the church and invited Rev. John Murser to come to Hendricks county 
and preach at my house. At the appointed time he came, and seven joined 
the church. Three weeks later he came again, and seven more jomed. Thus 
a society was formed in the settlement where Salem church now stands. In 
August of the same year Evan Davis, Father Crutchfield, Bowater Bales, 
myself and others commenced work on a hewed-log church, which was raised 
in the presence of an 'assembled multitude.' About this time Evan Davis 
built a saw mill on White Lick and there we had our lumber sawed out for 
flooring and seating. Evan Davis was class leader and I was assistant. By 
Christmas there were seventy-five members. In the summer of 1884 I visited 
Salem church and foimd the old log church had been removed and in its stead 
was a beautiful frame building, nicely painted and finished inside and out. 
Nearby stood a handsome brick school house. Surely this wilderness has 
'budded and blossomed like the rose.' " 

Could Mr. Marshall view the Liberty township of today, thirty years 
after his visit, he would learn that this was but the beginning of the prosperity 
and beauty of the community. 

EARLY ELECTIONS. 

There were thirty-nine voters in the general election held in Liberty 
township on August 2, 1830. The names follow: Evan Davis, Joshua 
Marshall, Jacob Harper, Abraham Woodward, Lewis Cooper, Samuel Gwin, 
Thomas Cooper, Edmond Cooper, Cornelius Cooper, George Dawes, William 
Rushton. George Rushton, John Cook, Jonathan Mills, William Allen, James 
Hewett, Michael Kirkuni, Jesse Allen, William Mar>^hall. \A^illiam Korby, 
Nathan Snodgrass, Joshua Rushton, Joel Wilson, Silas Gregory. Bowater 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



85 



Bales, Cornelius Johnson, Jesse Rushton, Joshua B. Hadley, Robert Cooper, 
John Mills, Thomas Harper, William Townsend, Nathan Cook, Robert H. 
Irvin, Silas Rushton, Martin Cooper. Eli Moon and Jesse Whippo. 

The Whig and Republican tickets have always been predommant m 
Liberty township. 

CLAYTON. 

On sections 33 and 34. in the northwestern part of Liberty township, 
the town of Clavton is located. It was platted in the year 1851 by George 
W. Wills and contains about eleven acres, which tract was purchased from 
Elizabeth Wills. The first name of the town was Claysville. in honor of 
Henry Clay, the Kentucky statesman. However, the name was changed to 
Clayton because there was another town in Indiana having the former name. 

The first house in Clayton was constructed by Thomas Potts and the 
second by Lewis T. Pounds, both of them being frame structures. The first 
store was opened bv Parker & Foote. the second by Richard and James Wor- 
rel and the third by Morrison & Thomas, near the year 1852. The first hotel 
was built by George W^ Wills and operated by Ephraim Hartsuck. The first 
justice of the peace was Amos S. Wills, elected in 1852. The first flourmg 
mill was built in 1852 by John Miles and James Worrel. 

THE PRESENT TOWN. 

The population of Clayton in 1910 was four hundred and ninety-seven, 
which has grown to six hundred since. On March 16, 1909, the town was 
incorporated as a town. The present town officers are: R. L. Ader, ^^ . A. 
Coble and S. E. Edmondson, trustees; Alvin Woodward, clerk; Lorenzo D 
Johnson, treasurer; Lee H. Smiley, marshal. 

Electric service is supplied Clayton by the Danville Light, Heat and 
Power Company, and includes street and residence lighting. Lorenzo Mabe 
has control of the water system, under contract whereby under certain condi- 
tions the city will get the ownership in a number of years. Fire plugs are 
placed at advantageous points in the town. 

The Clavton of today is a prosperous, progressive and beautiful little 

. city Trade is excellent among the business houses and the social life of the 

town is of high standard. Good conmiunication is available by way of the 

railroad or interurban to the capital city and other towns in the southern 

part of the county. . , . ., 

The People's Bank and Trust Company was organized m June. 1912, 



86 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

by the citizens of Liberty township. R. A. Edmondson was the first presi- 
dent; C. E. Kelly, secretary; Amos L. Mitchell, vice-president; R. A. Ed- 
mondson, Amos L. Mitchell, Charles B. Worrell. William Peck, W. F. Mar- 
tin and Charles West, directors. The present officers are the same. The 
capita] stock is $25,000. The bank was chartered on June 11, 1912. 

The Clayton State Bank was organized in 191 2 by Albert Johnson & 
Company. Albert Johnson was the first president; J. C. Walker, the first 
vice-president, and L. D. Johnson, the first cashier. The office of vice-presi- 
dent at present has no incumbent. The bank was chartered in 19 12. 

Clayton Lodge No. 463, Free and Accepted Masons, was organized on 
May 29, 1873, with the following charter members : John Harrison, James 
H. Rynearson, William E. Rowland, Thomas F. Dryden, Nelson Sowder, 
Amos S. Wills, John N. Wills and W. C. Mitchell. The first officers, ap- 
pointed by the grand lodge at Indianapolis, were : Amos S. Wills, worship- 
ful master; James H. Rynearson, senior warden, and Thomas F. Dfyden, 
junior warden. The lodge at present is in good condition and has a mem- 
bership of over a hundred. 

Clayton Lodge No. 205, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, was or- 
ganized in 1859 at Belleville and in recent years moved to this town. The 
lodge is in good condition and has one hundred and twenty-five members. 

BELLEVILLE. 

Next to Danville and Stilesville, Belleville is the oldest town in the 
county. It was laid out by William H. Hinton, Lazarus B. Wilson and 
Obadiah Harris in 1829. The construction of the national road through the 
village, which soon followed, greatly stimulated its growth and it increased 
rapidly in population. It soon became the social and educational center of 
the county. But, with the completion of the Indianapolis & Terre Haute 
railroad, in 1850, passing more than a mile north of the village, the town 
of Belleville began to retrograde and now is but a very small village of one 
hundred and fifty people. 

The first house was built by William H. Hinton, who also kept the first 
store. 

Belleville Lodge No. 205, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, was 
organized in April, 1859, by John O. Gilliland, Dr. L. H. Kennedy, James T. 
McCurdy, Z. S. Reagan and Dr. R. C. Moore. This lodge has since been 
moved to Clavton, a mile north. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 8/ 

CARTERSBURG. 

On section 31, in the northeast corner of Liberty township, is situated 
the village of Cartersburg. The village owes its existence to the \^andalia 
railroad, the construction of which caused the village to be laid out in 1850 
by John Carter, after whom it was named. The first lots were sold on 
January i, 1850. Van jMatlock and Simon Hornaday started the first store 
and soon established Cartersburg as a good trading point for produce. John 
Biddle later bought land and set up a store. In 1854 William H. Oliver 
bought land of Biddle, which lay north of the railroad, and laid the tract out 
in lots, which he offered for sale. He donated certain lots to the Methodist 
Episcopal church. Land was also bought on the south of the railroad in the 
John Carter farm and west of gravel road was laid off in lots. This gravel 
road is now the main street of Cartersburg. 

The village of Cartersburg is perhaps one of the most beautiful spots in 
Hendricks county, due in no small measure to the orderly rows of stately 
trees which line the streets. Great care was exercised in the sixties to plant 
these trees and now the village is enjoying the benefits. 

Belleville Lodge No. 65, Free and Accepted Masons, has a membership 
of forty in Cartersburg. Although small, the lodge is in good condition. 

Cartersburg has a population of about two hundred and fifty. 

The Cartersl3urg magnetic springs supply a large amount of water to the 
state. It is a mineral water and was first found in 1887 on Dobbin's farm, 
five miles southeast of Danville. 



CHAPTER XI. 



LINCOLN TOWNSHIP. 



TOPOGRAPHY. 

Lincoln township is located on the eastern boundary of Hendricks county, 
bounded on the north by Brown and Middle townships, on the east by Mar- 
ion county, on the south hy Washington township and on the west by Middle 
township. The township was organized in 1863, by a division of Brown 
township into two parts. White Lick, flowing through the western part, 
breaks the otherwise almost level ground of the township. The land along 
this stream valley is rolling and very fertile. The level portion of the area 
is of rich, alkivial rjnality in most places, but in spots is composed of clay, 
which is not highly productive. Plenty of timber once covered the land in 
this township, but, as in other parts of Hendricks, this has been removed 
irom the path of cultivation. 

EARLY HISTORY. 

In the autumn of 1824 James Brown made the first settlement in the 
territory destined to become Lincoln township. After him and previous to 
the year 1830 came G. W. Tyler, William Harris, Daniel and Thomas New- 
man, Daniel Brown, William Merritt, Robison Turpin, Caleb Shirley, John 
Given, Larkin Dollahite, James Shirley, Thomas Nash, Harvey and T. H. 
Barlow, the latter settling with their father, Enoch, in 1828, just outside the 
limits of Brownsburg. In 1830 and immediate years Asa McDaniel and 
sons, Joel Smith and sons and Peter Metsker located in the vicinity of 
Brownsburg. 

The first justice of the peace in Lincoln township was Edward Rails- 
back. Swain's tavern, on the road two miles east of Brownsburg, was one of 
the noted spots of the early day. This inn was a gathering place for the 
settlers and a very popular one. 

Politically, Lincoln township has been very changeable. Republicans and 
:Democrats having at different times controlled the township vote. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 89 

PRESENT STATUS. 

Although one of the smallest townships in the county, Lincoln is im- 
:portant. Agriculture is the main industry and in the town of Brownsburg 
there is strong evidence of civic and commercial pride. Two railroads and 
one interurban line increase the value of the township land, together with the 
good roads, the latter an universal feature of the entire county. The country 
bears the mark of improvement and modern life and is an example of the 
qualities which have made Indiana one of the first states in the Union. Good 
farms, schools, homes, roads, telephones, fences, drainage system, are but a 
few of the factors which make Lincoln township today a first class one. 

BROWNSBURG. 

The town of Brownsburg is located on section ii, in the northern part 
of Lincoln township. The town was laid out by William Harris in 1835 
and first named Harrisburg, but upon the establishment of the postoffice was 
changed to the present name. B. M. Logan was the first merchant in the 
town. 

Brownsburg was incorporated in the year 1848, in which year the board 
of commissioners ordered a chairman, clerk and five trustees elected. The 
election was held on June 24, 1848, and resulted in the choice of the follow- 
ing : Chairman, Henry H. INIoore ; clerk, T. J. White ; trustees, William M. 
Dinwiddie, T. J. White, Sam Betts, Gaten Menifee, James Davidson. Ten 
votes only were cast at this first election. This corporation did not last long, 
however. In 1870 it was revived and has continued ever since. The present 
officers are : Trustees. I. N. Mugg, R. A. Fuson and Elza Henson ; clerk, 
Harry H. Hughes ; treasurer, Harry Johnson ; marshal, John T. Ellis. 

The present population of Brownsburg is about nine hundred, the offi- 
cial census in 1910 having been eight hundred seventy-six. The only public 
utility at present in the town is that of electricity, which service is supplied 
by the Danville Light, Heat and Power Company. There is a branch factory 
of the Ladoga Canning Company, a tile factory, grist mill and saw mill in 
the list of industries. Brownsburg is the only town in Hendricks county at 
this date which allows licensed sale of liquor. 

Brownsburg, both in the business and residential part of town, is neat 
and attractive. It is a substantially built town. Business conditions are re- 
ported as being excellent. Social life also plays a prominent role in the com- 
munity. 



90 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Brownslnirg Lodge No. 241, Free and Accepted Masons, was organized 
in 1859 with the following members: J. T. Davidson, H. W. White, J. P. 
Welshans, William Harris, William McDaniel, Joseph Holloway and S. M. 
Potts. The lodge has a good memliership now and is very prosperous. 

Brownsburg Lodge No. 377, Knights of Pythias, was instituted in 1898. 
There are now one hundred and forty members. 

Brownsburg Lodge No. 188, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, was 
organized in 1857. The charter of the lodge was surrendered at the time of 
the opening of the Civil War, but was renewed in 1866. This lodge has again 
become inactive. 

There is also a tribe of the Improved Order of Red Men at Brownsburg. 

John A. Hollett Post No. 242, Grand Army of the Republic, was mus- 
tered in in the fall of 1883, with eleven members and named after a gallant 
soldier of the Seventy-ninth Indiana Volunteer Infantry. This post is no 
longer in active condition. 

The Hunter Bank was organized in April, 1907, by M. T. Hunter, C. L. 
Hunt, Jane Frank, Julia H. Huitt. The bank succeeded the firm of Cope & 
Hunt, bankers. M. T. Hunter was the first president, and C. L. Hunt the 
first cashier. These officers are the same now. The first and present capital 
stock is $10,000; the deposits total $210,000, and the surplus is $3,000. The 
bank was chartered in April, 1907. 

The Brownsburg State Bank was organized in 1908, succeeding the 
Brownsburg Bank. The first officers were : W. F. Evans, president ; J. L. 
Marsh, cashier; J. S. Tharp, vice-president; Grandison Eaton, assistant cash- 
ier. The present officers are: W. F. Evans, president; I. N. Mugg, cashier; 
J. S. Tharp, vice-president, and Ollie Miller, assistant cashier. This bank- 
was chartered on April i, 1908. 



CHAPTER XII. 



MARION TOWNSHIP. 



TOPOGRAPHY. 

The boundaries of Marion township are as follows : On the north by- 
Eel River township, on the east by Center and Clay, on the south by Clay 
and on the west by Putnam county. The surface in most places is undulating 
and in some spots flat. There is a clayey subsoil throughout the entire town- 
ship, making the ground more productive for the raising of grasses and thus 
making the business of stock raising equal to crop cultivation as the principal 
industry. There are no large streams, but several small ones flowing toward 
the two creeks, Mill and Eel river. 

EARLY SETTLEMENT. 

Marion township was settled later than most 'of the other townships, due 
to its position in the middle west of the county. Naturally the tide of immi- 
gration first touched the southern parts of the county, along the main stream 
channels, and Marion township was then considered a remote district. It 
was not until two years after the organization of the county, which was in 
1824, that permanent settlements were made here. The first settlers were 
Thomas Samuels, Xury West, John and Isaac Hays, Daniel, Thomas and 
David Higgins. who settled in the township from 1826 to 1827. From 1828 
to 1832 Paul Faught, Moses Cavett, William Blackketter, William and Har- 
vey Buntain, G. W. Turner, Wesley Morgan, Peter Vannice, Thomas Chadd, 
John Hancock, James McCown and William Hays settled in different por- 
tions of the township. 

FIRST ELECTION. 

The poll book of the general election held August 3, 1836, at New 
Williamsburgh gives the names of thirty-one voters. They are as follows : 
William Hodges, Elijah Sutton, David Fox, Henry Tomlinson, William 
Bailey, Abraham Lewis, Alexander Br3^ant, William Tomlinson, James Tur- 



92 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ner. Bradford Samuel, R. W. Shannon, Jeremiah Culbertson, Joseph Lewis, 
Jr., James Maccoun, John Higgins, Jacob F^ox, Henry Bland, William Hay- 
worth, John Mahan, John Robins, Jordan Denny, William Robins, John 
Vicory, Joseph Robins, Wesley Morgan, Hiram Tomlinson. B. S. B. Parker, 
Moses Tomlinson, Jeremiah Hunt, Martin Hancock and Thomas Higgins. 
The political record of Marion township has been Democratic since its 
organization. 

MARION TOWNSHIP IN I914. 

The intelligent cultivation of the soil, the pride in home, and the striving 
for better things and higher ideals, the qualities which characterize a pros- 
perous' and modern community, are no better exemplified than among the 
people of Marion township. The accomplishments of the people of this civil 
division of Hendricks county are testimonials to this condition. To the 
observer much seems to have been done in the last score of years. Roads 
have been built up, new farming methods have been adopted, schools have 
been improved, elegant residences have been constructed, churches have been 
increasing, telephones installed, and numerous other things added in order to 
keep step with the progress of civilization. 

NEW WINCHESTER. 

New Winchester was laid out in 1832 by Wesley Morgan and James 
Bronaugh. It is located a little west of the center of Marion township and 
is seven miles west of Danville, on the Rockville road. The town today is 
very small, having but a hundred inhabitants. The most attractive feature of 
the town is the new brick school house, containing the high school, erected in 
1908 at a cost of twenty thousand dollars. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

MIDDLE TOWNSHIP. 



TOPOGRAPHY. 



Middle towiLdup IS located in the north tier of townships, being bounded 
on the north bv Boone county, on the east by Brown and Lincoln townships, on 
the south by Lincoln, Washington and Center townships and on the west by 
Center and Union. The township was originally located in what was known 
as the "black swamps," the greater part of it being deficient in natural drain- 
age. Artificial drainage has, however, largely remedied this defect in the last 
ten years. The intense growth of deciduous trees, oak, poplar, walnut, maple, 
ash and manv other species, were evidence of a rich virgin soil. There are 
no large streams; the soil surface is nearly level; wheat and oats and corn are 
the main crops. 

SETTLEMENT. 

In the first organization of Hendricks county, Middle township, as it is 
now, was geographicallv located in the north central portion of the county 
and was one of the nine civil divisions. It included not only its present area,, 
but also all of what was afterward known as Union township. Its location 
and physical condition had much to do in determining its settlement and 
progress. Some physical defects in the land above mentioned had the ten- 
dency to make settlement here slower than m other parts of Hendricks. The 
first settlement made in the township was in the year 1830 by Lemuel McBee. 
His cabin and first clearing were m the western part of what is now Pittsboro. 
Richard Richardson was next, whose cabin, in section 6, township 16, 
was on the spot where Miles Hession recently resided. In three years' time 
other settlements were formed by the following families: The Spicklemires, 
Samuel Hill, the Hales. Thompsons. Wells, Holtsclaws. Jonas Lipe. Heze- 
kiah Dunick, Philip Waters and Jack Parker. This group of early pioneers 
erected the first cabins and formed the nucleus of community life. At this 
time no roads were known except neighborhood trails, marked by blazing the 



94 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

trees, the one leading through the township from Indianapolis to Crawfords- 
ville being the most prominent and bisecting the township: The herculean 
task of the pioneers was now begun. The rearing of cabins, rolling logs, 
cutting out highways and constructing bridges was begun. A great percent- 
age of the pioneers came from Mason, Fleming and Bourbon counties, Ken- 
tucky, and from Ohio, the Carolinas and Virginia, a splendid stock. The 
Watsons, Dillons, Weavers, Reynolds, Walters. Philips, Moneys, Smiths, 
Crabbs, Veaches, Kennedys, Craggs, Touts, Jones, Caywoods, Hughes, Her- 
ods in the succeeding decade came and entered or bought land. 

The township was organized in 1833 and James Parks was the first 
justice of the peace. 

DEVELOPMENT OF TOWNSHIP. 

Since the beginning of the seventies improvements have steadily ad- 
vanced in Middle township. The sickle, scythe and cradle, used by the pio- 
neers and wielded by muscular power, were relegated to the past when the 
reaper, mower, binder and other modern implements came into operation. 
The description of the other townships of the county apply equally well to 
this townsliip, for the development has been the same. The farms, rich in 
alluvial soil, are well drained and cleared of stumps and rocks. Miles of 
wire fencing have taken the place of the old rail fence. Farm houses and 
barns, many of them spacious and modern, contribute largely to the wealth 
of the community. Twenty-two miles of gravel road and twelve miles of 
rock road have been constructed in the township and turned over to the 
county to keep in repair. Seventy-five miles of post roads make possible the 
excellent system of rural free mail delivery. 

PITTSBORO. 

The town of Pittsboro was originally platted by Simon T. Hadley and 
William Matlock. It was first called by Mr. Hadley Pittsburg, and after- 
ward changed to the present name in order to have the name of the town and 
postoffice agree. 

Pittsboro's first store was in a small log room and kept by Basil Tout. 
It was located on the corner lot now owned by the liank. He was succeeded 
by James Hoadley and James Barker. John Vaughn built a frame building 
•on the lot where the Sawyer block now stands in 1844. Fie kept a general 
store, with plenty of whiskey for sale. Vaughn sold out to John C. Parker, 



I 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 95 

who, early in the fifties, erected a brick store on the corner where the Hay- 
worth block now stands. It burned in 1884. Thomas Hoadley, one of the 
first physicians, built a two-story frame where A. C. Dunn's property is now 
located. 

Aaron Keith was the first man in the town who made furniture. Elias 
Leach and Isaac B. Waters were other early craftsmen. 

In 1867 the Big Four railroad was built through Pittsboro and then 
"began a new era of prosperity. Business became better and the town grew. 
In 1873 Daniel Feely established a stave factory and operated it until 1886. 
Thousands of cords of oak, elm'and ash were brought from the sloughs, cut 
into staves and shipped to outside markets. Many farmers paid off niort- 
_gages by disposing of surplus timber. 

THE PRESENT PITTSEORO. 

Pittsboro is now a thrifty and well-ordered town of about five hundred 
inhabitants. The social and commercial, as well as religious, tone of the 
town is excellent. The community is advantageously located on the Ben- 
Hur interurban line and the Big Four railroad, and consequently much busi- 
ness is transacted with other markets. 

The Pittsboro Bank was organized in 1897 by Isaac Palmer, Jesse 
Smith and Steve Cline, the two latter acting as president and cashier, respect- 
ively. The present officers of the bank are: E. W. Sawyer, president; C. G. 
Olsen, vice-president; Glen C. Tolin, cashier; Miss Alcie Ridgway, assistant 
cashier. The capital stock is $10,000; the deposits amount to $84,000; and 
the surplus is $4,000. The bank was chartered in the year 1905 under the 
new banking laws. 

Pittsboro Lodge No. 342, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, was or- 
ganized on January 22, 1870. John N. Shirley, William N. Crabb, Lewis 
Watts, James Adams, Amos Hoak and J. M. McLean were the charter men> 
b.ers. It was the outgrowth of the Brownsburg lodge. The lodge erected its 
present home in 1874. The lodge is now in good condition, having a mem- 
bership of over one hundred. 

Pittsboro Lodge No. 428, Free and Accepted Masons, was instituted in 
1 87 1 by John Burton, deputy grand master. Its home was in the second 
story of E. A. Parker's store building, then occupied by A. C. Weaver. This 
lodge did not last long. It became defunct in 1882, when the grand lodge 
-called in its charter. The present lodge. No. 620, was instituted by Jacob 



! 



96 HENDRICKS COUNTY^ INDIANA. 

Smith with thirteen charter members. Beginning under dispensation in 
1893, it was chartered in due and ancient form May 25, 1899. Its first 
officers were: Sabert S. Offutt, worshipful master; Chester H. Weaver, 
senior warden; W. D. Lewis, junior warden; George D. Junken, secretary. 
Its present membership is seventy-one. The stated communications are the 
first and third Tuesday evenings of each month at their hall in the Sawyer 
block. 

Thomas Ashby Post No. 451, Grand Army of the Republic, was or- 
ganized in the old school building September 8, 1886, with the following 
charter members : A. C. Weaver, W. D. Lewis, R. T. Dorman, H. T. Kirk, 
E. M. Weaver, J. M. Wills, S. S. Wills, W. H. Milam, George W. Tidrick, 
W. B. McClung, Jacob C. Waters, Lewis Buergelin, Thomas Brooks, Charles 
P. Cox, Joe Williamson and Samuel James. At eight P. M., April 8. 1886, a 
delegation of comrades came up from Danville and assisted in the organiza- 
tion. The first officers of the post were : A. C. Weaver, post commander ; 
William D. Lewis, senior vice-commander; Richard T. Droman, junior vice- 
commander; Henry T. Kirk, officer of the day; Ellis M. Weaver, officer of 
the guard; James M. Wills, adjutant; S. S. Wills, quartermaster; George W. 
Tisrick, sergeant major; William B. McClung, quartermaster sergeant. 

Thomas Ashby Woman's Relief Corps No. 231 was organized ]\Iarch 
25, 1899, with eighteen charter members. Mrs. Marian McVey French was 
installed first president; Etta Jordan Palmer, treasurer, and Mrs. Eva Lewis,, 
secretary. 



CHAPTER XIV. 

UNION TOWNSHIP. 



TOPOGRAPHY. 



Union township is located in the northern tier of the county, bounded 
on the north bv Boone county, on the east by Middle township, on the south 
by Center, and on the west by Eel river. The land surface is generally level, 
with rolling land in the southwest and northwest corners. Like Middle 
township, the natural drainage is very poor, but has been aided considerably 
by artificial tiling. The land in this township is valuable today and it is easy 
of cultivation. 

EARLY SETTLEMENT. 

The first white settlement was made in Union township in the year 
18-^8 by John Matlock and John Fowler. Isaac Veiley entered the land 
where Lizton is now located, m 1828, but did not move to his holdings until 
1831 Prior to 1835 the following located in this township: Archibald 
Alexander, James and William Leak, their sons, William Montgomery, John 
Pritchett Claiborne Davis and the Plummers. The bad drainage of the 
township hindered the rapid growth of the colony, the same as m Middle, 
and it was not until 1840 that the settlement assumed any size whatever. The 
cabins were small and far apart and the clearings were mostly unproductive. 
One of the advantages of the pioneer was that the stock brought with thera 
would live in the woods all winter and usually do well. This was especially 
so with swine, and soon after the arrival of the first settlers wild hogs be- 
came verv abundant in the woods and all those who had ever had a hog go 
astray had a lawful claim upon the common herd. In the autumn of the 
year 'after the acorns and the other mast began falling, these hogs became 
fat and were hunted down by the settlers with dog and gun. the same as the 
bear and deer. The settlers often caught them in traps. When desirable to 
catch them alive, this was always necessary and was accomplished by making 
a log pen so high that they could not jump over and arranging a trap door 

(7) 



98 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

to which a string was fastened. Corn was then scattered in trails in dif- 
ferent directions through the woods to entice the swine into the pen, when a 
man secreted high in a tree top would spring the trap. 

FIRST ELECTIONS. 

The poll book for the presidential election results in this township in 
the year 1852 gives the names of fifty-one voters. The list is as follows: 
Jackson Griffith, R. D. Northcutt, Melzer Ward, William F. Darnell, James 
Leak, Benjamin G. Hiatt, John Pritchett, Claiborne Davidson, Tyra Stocker, 
Meredith Leach, Philip Stickleman, George Wibon, Solomon Adams, J. P. 
Lewis, William Northcutt, James Reed, Ezekiel Davidson, Joseph Edwards, 
Parry Burk, E. Hutchins, James Adams, William Joseph, Thomas Northcutt, 
John A. Leach, Henry Lewis, Thomas C. Pritchett, Benjamin L. Rainy, 
Doctor Buzzard, John Gregory. R. S. McDaniel, James E. Montgomery, 
William LlinVs, James Dingemore, John D. Fear, William D. Lane, S. T. 
Lewis, John D. Hiatt, William S. Johnson, Anderson Leach, Isaac Burnett, 
Samuel T. Scott, Thomas C. Parker, Larkin C. Eperson, Samuel Reynolds, 
Enos Leach, Leland Leak, John Nouringer, Francis A. Scott, Johnson Brook- 
shire and J. H. Herrick. Politically, the township has most always favored 
the Democratic ticket. 

PRESENT UNION TOWNSHIP. 

The growth and progress of Union township has kept pace with the 
development of the neighboring townships. The class of people are gen- 
erally the same and the improvements have been equal. The land in Union 
township is now very valuable, this value increasing by the knowledge of 
proper cultivation and care which has in recent years come to the entire 
county of Hendricks. 

LIZTON. 

Lizton is the only town in Union township. It was laid out by Jesse 
Veiley in 1837 and named by him Ncav Elizabeth, in honor of Mrs. Veiley. 
The name was contracted to Lizton when the postoffice was first established. 

Lizton never assumed a forward place in Hendricks county, although 
it has always been a substantial town, with good business and prosperous and 
public-spirited citizens. The population now is about two hundred and fifty. 
The town was incorporated in 1909. The present officers are: George 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 99 

Thompson, Clarence Storms and A. Gibson, trustees ; I. E. Voris, clerk ; Jesse 
Tharpe, treasurer. 

The Bank of Lizton, organized by Marion Bailey and others, commenced 
business on December i, 1910. Mr. Bailey was the first president; W. E. 
Leachman, vice-president; James T. Leak, cashier, and George Huber, assist- 
ant cashier. The same officers are now active. The capital stock is $10,000; 
deposits, $85,000, and surplus, $1,000. Certificate of authority was issued to 
this bank on October 19, 19 10. 

Lizton Lodge. No. 342, Knights of Pythias, was organized about ten 
years ago and now has one hundred and sixty members. 

lona Tribe No. 231, Improved Order of Red Men, has one hundred and 
ten members. 

An Odd Fellows' lodge existed here once and was prosperous, but later 



I 



I 



CHAPTER XV. 



WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP. 



TOPOGRAPHY. 

On the east line u'i Hendricks county is located Washington township, 
bounded on its north side by Lincoln and Middle townships, on the east by 
Marion county, on the south side by Guilford and Liberty, and on the west 
by Center township. White Lick creek flows across the west side of this 
township and the East fork of this same creek touches the southeast corner. 
Along the creek valley the land is rolling and fertile; the central and eastern 
portion of the civil division is very level and, before the day of artificial 
drainage, was rather swampy. Tt was not, however, equal to other town- 
ships in this respect. The early growth of timber, now gone, was largely 
composed of beech, but embraced many valuable varieties. The soil is clay 
and alluvial, being well adapted to grasses and grain. 

EARLY DAYS. 

The first settlement in Washington township was made in the northeast 
corner, near the site of Shiloh church, by Robert Wilson, Gideon Wilson and 
Elisha Kise in the year 1822. The next year Daniel Tryer, Aaron Homan, 
the Griggs family, Joseph Fausett and others came into the same neighbor- 
hood in the same year, 1823, James Dunn, John Givens, Abner Dunn, for 
whom Abner's creek was named, and others, settled on the west side of the 
township on the above named creek. James Dunn settled on the Rockville 
road. Among those who came into the township v/ithin the next few years 
were David Cox, Alexander McCammock, Enoch Barlow and his sons Har- 
vey and Harrison, the Thornbroughs. Hurons, Huftords and Gossetts. 

This township was one of the four which were organized at the same 
time as the organization of Hendricks county and received its name from 
George Washington at the suggestion of Aaron Homan, who was the first 
justice of the peace and married the second couple to be wedded in the county. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. lOI 



FIRST ELECTION. 



The first general election in Washington township was held August 7, 
1826, at the home of Daniel C. Hults, and eleven persons voted. These were : 
Sidney Williams, Daniel C. Hults, James Merritt. Joseph Runyan, Isaac 
Williamson, Daniel B. Tryer, James Higgenbotham, Joseph Phillips, William 
S. Merrill, Robert Wilson and John Triggs. In its political history, Wash- 
ington township was at first Whig and after the death of that party followed 
the fortunes of the Republican organization. 

AVON. 

Avon, the capital of Washington township, is at a point very near the 
center of the township. The first settlement of the neighborhood was about 
the year 1830. Among the first settlers were the Hurons, the Rosses, the 
Gossetts, the McClains, the Jenkinses, Abram Harding, Absalom Payne, Dr. 
Malone, R. J. Barker, G. W. Merritt and James Siggurson. It was dense 
forest everywhere ; deer and wolves were a common sight ; but in small clear- 
ings little cabins of round logs sprang up and in a very short time this became 
a "neighborhood." The whole settlement was made up of people of energy 
and enterprise who came here to make a home that was to be their home, 
so their plans took in the question of church and school and roads and a 
postoftice. In 1833 Absalom Payne, who entered the land and lived where J. 
H. Wear now lives, was commissioned postmaster of Hampton post- 
office, with a weekly mail carried on horseback from the east to the west, 
but no one remembers where from or where to. In' a few years Mr. Payne 
tired of the empty honor and the office passed to Dr. Malone, where J. H. 
^\'inings lives, and a little later to W. T. Ross, where E. E. Blair now lives. 
Mr. Ross also tired of the office and, no one else wanting it, is was allowed 
to die, and Hampton was no more. In 1852 O. J. Huron, newly married, 
was persuaded to accept a commission as postmaster, naming the office ^^'hite 
Lick and locating it in his log cabin, one-fourth mile west of present Avon. 
Just three months satisfied Mr. Huron and White Lick died and was laid 
away, in memory, besides Hampton. Along in the fifties John Smoot began 
making visits here as a pack-peddler ; soon he added a horse and wagon and 
came weekly, and, after a time, about 1858, leased ground and built a 
small room in the corner of J. H. Ross's yard, where William Shipman now 
lives. Smoot emptied his pack and put a few more items on a few shelves, 



I 



'°^ HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 



and this was the beginning of the town. Bnt Mr. Ross was a strono- Re- 
pnbhcan and Mr. Snioot an ardent Democrat, and it was not long until Smoot 
moved l„s store to Demoeratic ground, across the road, on the land of John 
D,ckerson and thus, at the very first the town began to move. Mr Dick- 
erson not bemg willing to sell a lot to Mr. Smoot, the latter sought one else- 
where and, November x i86.. R. J. Barker deeded Smoot a half acre a me 
far her west and the following winter he moved his store on a couple of log- 
sleds to h,s own lot; this was the third town-site. Mr. Smoot prospered and 
enlarged h,s store and added more goods, and in 1867 he headed a petition to 
Washmgton for a postofifice, and for R. M. Hartley to be made postmaster 
bu no name was suggested for the new office, and the authorities used h^ 

%6,T\Z , '?'""°"^ *'^" ^'- ^^^"^^'^ commission, dated April .8 
1868, reached hmi ,t gave the office the picturesque name, Smootsdell, located 

PI fuT'Tl" I ^'™ "' '"° ™*"^ ^ ^^*' ^^"i^d horseback from 
Planihe Id by D. S. Barker. When the I. & St. L. railroad was bein. sur- 
veyed, the man who, with a blue pencil, marked the stakes, made fun ^f the 

cilM "N?"' ?:T?r'."' ""' ""' "'"^ *^ '°"'"-" Artistically he pen- 
ciled New Ph,ladelph,a" on a stake and drove it down. When the road 

The people hked the name and petitioned to have the postoffice name changed 
White r- k ; T; 'Z ""' ""°"'"'^" "^^ '^'^' ^^^y ''--■^ Hampton and 

frs ereclf, u 1"' ""^ ™°™^ '° K^"^^^' ^ ""'^ '-'- the Barker broth- 
ers erected a budding at the railroad crossing, put a stock of goods in one 
room, the other being used by the company. The Barkers soon tired of the 
store and quit then J. L. Middleton. in 1875, added a general store to Ws 
shoe shop south of the railroad. In 1889 E. T. Huron was made noTtmast 

Itmarr M 't f''""°" "°^^- '" ''">' "^'"^^ T^yCtZl 
postmaster. Mr. Taylor was full of enterprise and built a new postoffice 

buildmg and put m a stock of goods, and Avon, for the first th'e had 

thre stores at one tmie. From the very first there was a rivalry amon. the 

people as to the location of the postoffice and the future town; fhe east s d 

ed oflh^f: 1 "T '"T"''" " ™^^- ^"^^ ""^ ^°" f°'^^ -- '- n- 
It first ah "^^ ' ""f u'° '"' '' '" '''"""^ ^°""^"- The station was 
at fi St a half nide west of the Plainfield road, then on the road, then three- 

urths o a mde east, where trains stopped at an old box-car i^ the midX 
Of a fa,m for passengers, and patrons carried trunks down the track till 
they were t.red, then changed hands and carried again. The west side com 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. IO3 

plained and grumbled, than begged and finally won the station, and thought 
themselves secure; but in 1891 private citizens bought a little yellow dwelling 
and moved it to the crossing a mile east, and the company slid its telegraph 
office into it. The old sad look came again to the west-sider's face; the com- 
pany saw the look and smiled, then moved their station also to the yellow 
dwelling, using it for all purposes until 1894, when, with generous help of 
east-side citizens, the company erected a neat three-room building. The east- 
side countenance broadened; the little yellow building was moved back and 
a stock of goods put in and, for a little while, Avon had four stores, three 
at the west side and one at the east, a mile away, but trade was backward and 
the new store soon closed, the yellow dwelling was sold again and this time 
was moved three miles away, when it ceased to worry the west side, with 
her three stores and the postoffice left. In 1900 the first rural free delivery 
in the county, and among the first in the state, was established in Danville, 
route No. i, and its first delivery was made April 2d, of that year. While 
this has proven one of the greatest blessings ever bestowed on the common 
people, it crippled the Avon postoffice, reducing the salary from thirty-five 
dollars to six dollars per quarter, and when, on November i, 1902, the first 
Plainfield route was opened and passed the Avon postoffice door, the office 
was discontinued, and now Hampton. White Lick, Smootsdell and Avon 
all lie buried side by side. But the town survived, holding its own till the 
Terre Haute, Indianapolis & Eastern traction line was opened. September i, 
1906, when it began to improve and has continued to do so, until today its 
two general stores sell several times the amount of goods sold then, and 
property values have about trebled. 



CHAPTER XVI. 

POLITICAL HISTORY AND OFFICIAL ROSTER. 



PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGNS. 



The year 1824 is the first year in Hendricks county in which politics 
entered, and thirty-seven votes were cast for President, as follows : Tackson, 
6; J. Q. Adams, i; Clay, 30. At that time there were no partv alliances' 
personal popularity, ability and influence were the main factors determining 
the failure or success of a candidate. Jackson carried the county in the 
campaigns of 1828 and 1832, the first time by a majoritv of fortv over John 
Qumcy Adams and the second time by one hundred and nine over Henry 
Clay. In the year 1836 the Whigs were victorious. Martin Van Buren was 
the Democratic candidate for President and William Henrv Harrison, the 
Whig. There were one thousand one hundred and twentv-one votes cast in 
Hendricks county that year, and of this number the Whigs received seven 
hundred and thirty-one, a majority of three hundred and fortv-two. 

The campaign of i860, just prior to the opening of the Civil war. was 
a hot one in this county. Abraham Lincoln was the nominee of the Republi- 
can party, Stephen A. Douglas of the Northern Democrats. John C. Breck- 
enndge of the Southern Democrats, and John Bell of the' Constitutional 
Union party. The campaign was an exciting one and. as historv records, 
Lincoln was the victor, although he received onlv two-fifths of the popular 
vote m the United States. The split in the Democratic partv made this 
result possible. A heavy vote was polled in this countv. Lincoln receiving 
two thousand fifty votes; Douglas, one thousand eightv-three ; Breckinridcre" 
two hundred forty-four, and Bell, forty-one. Eight of the townships vot'ed 
for Lincoln; Eel River, Middle and Union townships gave their pluralities to 
Douglas. 

In the presidential election of 1864 George B. JNIcClellan, the first com- 
mander of the Army of the Potomac, was placed in the field against Lincoln 
McClellan received in Hendricks county but eight hundred thirtv-two votes, 
against two thousand six hundred and twenty-two for Lincoln. Much excite- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. TO5 

Tnent and bitter feeling existed in Hendricks county during this election. 
Many threats were made by ardent supporters of the war and it was deemed 
necessary for the polls to be guarded to prevent violence against some 
voters supposed to belong to a treasonable order. Two townships, Brown 
and Union, gave a majority for McClellan. 

In an uninterrupted series the elections proceeded every four years until 
191 2 with the Republicans in the lead. The campaign of 1912 and the 
split in the Republican ranks is fresh in the mind of the reader. In 
this year Woodrow Wilson, the Democratic nominee, received the plurality 
of votes cast in Hendricks county. 

Following is a summary giving the vote in the different Presidential 
•elections from 1828, also a roster of the county officials from the date of the 
■organization of the county: 

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS. 

In the election of 1828 the Democratic ticket, Andrew Jackson and 
John C. Calhoun, received 204 votes in Hendricks county, and John Ouincy 
Adams and Richard Rush, Whigs, received 164. 

In 1832 Andrew Jackson and Martin \"an Buren, Democrats, received 
.483 votes, and Henry Clay and John Sergeant, 374. 

In 1836 the result was: William H. Harrison and Francis Granger, 
731 ; Martin \^an Buren and Richard AI. Johnson, 389. 

In 1840 the county gave a substantial majority to William Henry Har- 
rison over Martin Van Buren, the vote being: Harrison, 1,189; ^^'^^ Buren, 
-651. 

In 1844: Henry Clay and Theodore Frelinghuysen, Whigs. 1,262; 
James K. Polk and George M. Dallas. Democrats, 844 ; James G. Birney and 
Thomas Morris. Liberty, 26. 

In 1848: Zachary Taylor and Millard Fillmore, Whigs, 1,158; Lewis 
Cass and \\'illiam O. Butler, Democrats, 775 ; Martin Van Buren and Charles 
A. Adams, Liberty, 173. 

In 1852: Winfield Scott and William A. Graham, Whigs. 1.252; 
Franklin Pierce and William R. King. Democrats, 980; John P. Hale and 
George W. Julian, Free Democrats. 156. 

In 1856: John C. Fremont and William L. Dayton, Republicans. 
1,680; James Buchanan and John C. Breckenridge. Democrats, 1.378; Mil- 
lard Fillmore and Andrew J. Donelson, Americans, yz. 



I06 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

In i860: Abraham Lincoln and Hannibal Hamlin, Republicans, 2,050; 
Stephen A. Douglas and Herschel V. Johnson, Northern Democrats, 1,083; 
John C. Breckenridge and Joseph Lane, Southern Democrats, 244; John 
Bell and Edward Everett, Constitutional Union, 41. 

In 1864: Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson, Republicans, 2,622; 
George B. McClellan and George H. Pendleton, Democrats, 832. 

In 1868: Ulysses S. Grant and Schuyler Colfax, Republicans, 2,973; 
Horatio Seymour and Francis P. Blair, Jr., Democrats. 1,462. 

In 1872: U. S. Grant and Plenry Wilson, Republicans, 2,834; Horace 
Greeley and B. Gratz Brown, Democrats, 1,626; Charles O'Conor and John 
Q. Adams, Straight-out Democrats, 4. 

In 1876 : Rutherford B. Hayes and William A. Wheeler, Republicans. 
3,014; Samuel J. Tilden and Thomas A. Hendricks, Democrats, 1,912; Peter 
Cooper and Samuel F. Carey, Greenback, 231. 

In 1880: James A. Garfield and Chester A. Arthur, Republicans, 3,196; 
Winfield S. Hancock and William H. English, Democrats, 1,994; James B. 
Weaver and B. J. Chambers, Greenback, 218; Neal Dow and PI. A. Thomp- 
son, Prohibitionists, 4. 

In 1884: James G. Blaine and John A. Logan, Republicans, 3,003; 
Grover Cleveland and Thomas A. Hendricks, Democrats, 2,069; Benjamin 

F. Butler and Alanson M. West, Greenback Nationals, 162; John P. St. 
John and William Daniel, Prohibitionists, 88. 

In 1888 Benjamin Harrison and Levi P. Morton, Republicans, received 
1,211 majority over the Democratic candidates, Grover Cleveland and Allen 

G. Thurman. 

In 1892: Benjamin Harrison and Whitelaw Reid, Republicans, 3,020; 
Grover Cleveland and Adlai E. Stevenson, Democrats, 2,028; John Bidwell 
and J. B. Cranfill, Prohibitionists, 215. 

In 1896: William Jennings Bryan and Arthur Sewall, Democrats, 
2,365; William McKinley and Garret A. Hobart, Republicans, 3,409; Joshua 
Levering and Hale Johnson, Prohibitionists, 33 ; John M. Palmer and Simon 
B. Buckner, National Democrats, 18; Rev. Charles E. Bentley and James H. 
Southgate, National, 46; Charles H. Matchett and Matthew Maguire, Social 
Labor, i. 

In 1900: William J. Bryan and Adlai E. Stevenson, Democrats, 2,359; 
William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt, Republicans, 3.426; John G 
Woolley and Henry B. Metcalf, Prohibitionists. 154; Eugene V. Debs and 
Job Harriman, vSocial Democrats, i. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



107 



In 1904 : Theodore Roosevelt and Charles W. Fairbanks, Republicans, 
3,434; Alton B. Parker and Henry G. Davis, Democrats, 2,174; Silas C. 
Swallow and George W. Carroll, Prohibitionists, 215; Thomas E. Watson 
and Thomas H. Tibbies, Peoples, 18; Eugene V. Debs and Benjamin Han- 
ford, Socialists, 5 ; Charles H. Corrigan and William W. Cox, Social La- 
bor, 2. 

In 1908: William J. Bryan and John W. Kern, Democrats, 2,546; 
William H. Taft and James S. Sherman, Republicans, 3,231. 

In 1912: Woodrow Wilson and Thomas R. Marshall, Democrats, 
2,337; William H. Taft and James S. Sherman, 1,439; Theodore Roosevelt 
and Hiram W. Johnson, Progressives, 1,495; Eugene W. Chafin and Aaron 
S. Watkins, Prohibitionists, 142. 

STATE SENATORS. 



1826-28— Josiah F. Polk. 
1828-31 — Calvin Fletcher. 
1831-33 — Willis G. Condit. 
1833-36 — Lewis Mastin. 
1836-42 — Alexander Little. 
1842-45 — Archibald Alexander. 
1845-48 — Samuel A. Verbrike. 
1848-51 — Jonathan S. Harvey. 
1851-52 — John Witherow. 
1852-56 — John Witherow. 
1856-60 — Solomon Blair. 
1860-64 — Solomon Blair. 
1864-68 — Thomas J. Cason. 



1868-72— John V. Hadley. 
1872-76 — Addison Daggy. 
1876-80 — William H. Ragan. 
1880-84 — Simpson F. Lockridge. 
1884-88— Leander M. Campbell. 
1888-92— Silas A. Hays. 
1892-96 — Albert W. Wishard. 
i8q6-oo — Enoch G. Hogate. 
1900-04 — James M. Barlow. 
1904-08 — Empson T. Lane. 
1908-12 — Horace L. Hanna. 
191 2-16 — Thomas L. Neal. 



REPRESENTATIVES. 



1826-28- 


-Thomas J. Matlock. 


1835-36- 


1828-29- 


-Thomas J. Matlock. 


1836-37- 


1829-30- 


-Samuel Wick. 


1837-38- 


1930-31- 


-Lewis Mastin. 


1838-42- 


1831-32- 


-Lewis Mastin. 


1842-43- 


1832-33- 


—Lewis Mastin. 


1843-44- 


1833-34- 


—Thomas Nichols. 


1844-45- 


1834-35- 


—Christian C. Nave. 


1845-46 



-Christian C. Nave. 
-Thomas Nichols. 
-William T. Alatlock. 
-Samuel Brenton. 
-Henry H. Marvin. 
-Benjamin M. Logan, 
-William T. Matlock. 
-Jonathan S. Harvey. 



io8 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDJANA. 



1846-47 — Jonathan S. Harvey. 
1847-48 — Jonathan S. Harvey. 
1848-49— David Wade. 
1849-50 — Samuel A. Russell. 
1850-51 — George Fleece. 
1851-52 — Ebenezer S. Watson. 
1852-54 — Joseph H. Ballard. 
1854-56 — Henry G. Todd. 
1856-58 — John Davis. 
1858-60 — Levi Ritter. 
1860-62 — James Burgess and Thos. 

J. Cason. 
1862-64 — James M. Gregg. 
1864-66 — Charles F. Hogate and 

John T. Burns. 
1866-68 — Leander M. Campbell and 

B. F. Thomas. 
1868-70 — Allen Furnas and Milton 

A. Osborn. 
1870-72 — Allen Furnas and Milton 

A. Osborn. 
1872-74 — Jesse S. Ogden and Allen 

Furnas. 
1874-76 — William H. Ragan and J. 



1876-78 — Edwin T. Lane and James 

W. Morgan. 
1878-80 — Jonathan Burch and Geo. 

W. Snoddy. 
1880-82 — W. M. Ridpath and James 

G.Miles. 
1882-84 — Enoch G. Hogate and J. 

H. Fleece. 
1884-86— Silas A. Hays and J. H. 

Fleece. 
1886-88— Jacob H. Fleece. 
1888-90 — Cyrus L. Stanley. 
1890-92 — M. G. Parker. 
1892-94 — James W^ Hamrick. 
1894-96 — James W. Hamrick. 
1896-98 — James M. Barlow. 
1898-00 — James M. Barlow. 
1900-02 — William B. Vestal. 
1902-04 — John T. Hume. 
1904-06 — Horace L. Hanna. 
1906-08 — Horace L. Hanna. 
1908-10 — Mord Carter. 
1910-12 — Mord Carter. 
1912-14 — John J. Dugan. 



W. Morgan. 



CIRCUIT JUDGES. 



1852-53 — Fabius M. Finch. 
1853-59 — Stephen Major. 
1859-65 — Fabius ]\L Finch. 
1865-66 — John Coburn. 
1866-72 — Cyrus C. Hines. 
1872-78 — ^Livingston Howland. 
1878-82— Jacob B. Julian. 



1882-88— Joshua G. Adams. 
1888-94— John V. Hadley. 
1894-00 — John V. Hadley. 
1900-06 — Thomas J. Cofer. 
1906-12 — James L. Clark. 
19 12-18 — George W. Brill. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



109 



COMMON PLEAS JUDGES. 



1862-65 — Charles A. Ray. 
1865-70 — Solomon Blair. 
1870-73 — Solomon Blair. 



1852-56 — James M. Gregg. 
1856-60 — Joseph H. Farley. 
1860-61 — John Coburn. 
1861-62 — John A. Beale. 

In 1873 the business of this office was transferred to the circuit court of 
the county. 

PROBATE JUDGES. 



1829-32 — William H. Hinton. 
1832-35 — Levi Jessup. 
1835-43 — Henry H. Marvin. 



1843-50 — George P. Ellis. 
1850 — Abraham Bland. 



The business of this office was transferred to the common pleas court 

ASSOCIATE JUDGES. 

1844-5 



1827-30 — Samuel Jessup. 
1830-32 — Samuel Jessup. 
1832-34 — Thomas Lockhart. 
1834-37 — Gideon Wilson. 
1837-44 — James McCown and Gid- 
eon Wilson. 



James McCown and James 
Green. 
1850-51 — William Tomlinson. 
185 1 (vacancy) — Jonathan Cope. 
1 85 1 (full term) — Peter Curtis. 



At this time the business was taken over by the circuit court of the county 
of the new constitution. 



PROSECUTING ATTORNEYS. 



1844-46 — Abraham A. Hammond. 
1846-47 — William Herod. 
1847-48 — Wxatt A. George. 
1848-49 — Wyatt A. George. 
1849-51 — Henry H. Marvin. 
1851-52 — David Wallace. 
1S52-56 — Hiram Brown. 
1856-58 — P. S. Kennedy. 
18 c8-6o— William P. Fishback. 
1860-62— William P. Fishback. 



1862-64 — William W. Leathers. 
1 864-66 — William W. Leathers. 
1866-68— Joseph S. Miller. 
1868-70— Daniel W. Howe. 
1870-72 — Jesse S. Ogden. 
1872-74 — Thomas J. Cofer. 
1874-76 — Thomas J. Cofer. 
1876-78 — Joshua G. Adams. 
1878-80— Richard B. Blake. 
1880-82— Newton M. Taylor. 



no 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



1882-84— William T. Brown. 
1884-86— William N. Harding. 
1886-88— Joseph B. Kealing. 
1888-90— Harrison T. Tincher. 
1890-92— Thad S. Adams. 
1892-94— David F. Hill. 
1894-96— Otis E. Giilley. ' 
1896-98— Otis E. Giilley. 



1898-00— John McCormick. 
1900-02— Everett Cooper. 
1902-04— Charles V. Sears. 
1904-06— Charles V. Sears. 
1006-C8— Edg-ar M. Blessing. 
1898-TO— Edgar M. Blessing. 
19 TO- 1 2— Charles V. Sears. 
1012-14— James P. Snodgrass. 



COMMON PLEAS PROSECUTORS. 



1852-56— Joseph S. Miller. 
1856-57— James A. Crawley. 
i857-6c^Richard H. Litson. 
1860-64— John C. Bufkin. 
1864-66 — William W. Waller. 



1866-68— William W. Woollen. 
1868-70— William Irin. 
1870-72— David V. Burns. 
1872— Robert E. Smith. 



At this time the business was taken over by the circuit court of the countv. 



1830-37— Simon T. Hadley. 
1837-44— James M. Gregg. 
1844-51— Joshua D. Parker. 
1851-55 — ^_Iohn Irons. 
1855-59— John Irons. 
1859-63— Levi Ritter. 
1863-67 — Levi Ritter. 
1867-70— A. M. Luke. 
1870-74 — Lotan W. Jenkins. 
1874-78— William Irvin. 



CLERKS. 



1878-82— William F. Haynes. 
1882-86— William R. McClelland. 
1886-90— E. G. Hogate. 
1890-94— David Hadley. 
1894-98— Melville C. Masten. 
1898-02 — Zimrie E. Dougan. 
1902-06— John C. Taylor. 
1906-10— James M. Adams. 
1910-14— Cha^-les E. Edwards. 



TREASURERS. 



1844-47— James S. Odell. 
1847-50— Edmund Clark. 
1850-52 — Harmon Brittain. 
1852-54— Harmon Brittain. 
1854-56— Nicholas T. Hadley. 
1856-58— Daniel B. South. 



1858-60— Daniel B. South. 
1860-62 — Stephen W. Hardin. 
1862-64 — Oliver W. Hill. 
1864-66— Erastus F. Hunt. 
1866-68— Erastus F. Hunt. 
1868-70— John H. Lewis. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



Ill 



1870-72 — John H. Lewis. 
1872-74 — Hiram T. Storm. 
1874-76 — Lewis S. Watts. 
1876-78 — Alfred Welshans. 
1878-80 — Wyatt Osborn. 
1880-82 — Enos C. Hornaday. 
1882-84 — Rodney Jeger. 
1884-86— Henry Hadley. 
1886-88— Marion Eaton. 
1888-90 — George W. Nave. 
1890-92 — Joseph K. Little. 



1892-94 — John Z. A. Maltern. 
1894-96 — Perry R. Ttilley. 
1896-98 — Oliver M. Piersol. 
1898-00 — William N. Lakin. 
1900-02 — Oscar Hadley. 
1902-04 — John E. Vestal. 
1904-06 — James A. Clay. 
1906-08 — James W. Dempsey. 
1908-ic^-Jacob E. O'Neal. 
1910-12 — George W. Macomber. 
19 1 2- 14 — George W. Macomber. 



AUDITORS. 



1844-50 — Allen Hess. 
1850-55 — Allen Hess. 
1855-59 — Allen Hess. 
1859-63 — Erancis R. Crawford. 
1863-67 — Lawrence S. Shuler. 
1867-70 — W. M. Hess. 
1870-74 — W. M. Hess. 
1874-78— Elisha H. Hall. 
1878-82— William H. Nichols. 



1882-86— Tohn Kendall. 
1886-90— J. T. Barker. 
1890-94 — N. C. Brewer. 
1894-98 — William H. Nichols. 
1898-02 — Charles M. Caviness. 
1902-06 — David Mills. 
1906-10 — W. N. Nichols. 
19 10- 1 4 — Lewis W. Borders. 



RECORDERS. 



1830-37 — Simon T. Hadley. 
1837-44 — Simon T. Hadley. 
1844-51 — Simon T. Hadley. 
1851-5.S — Simon T. Hadley. 
1855-59 — Simon T. Hadley. 
1859-61 — Jacob H. Fleece. 
1861-62— Daniel B. South. 
1862-66 — Jesse Ogden. 
1866-70 — John L. Brown. 
1870-74 — William Patterson. 



1874-78 — George Rawlings. 
J 878-82— John A. Osborn. 
1882-86 — Adrian A. Parsons. 
1886-90 — T. B. Kinnan. 
1890-94 — James E. Humston. 
1894-98 — William L. Wilson. 
1898-02 — William L. Wilson. 
1902-06 — Ellis M. Weaver. 
1906-10 — John S. Duckworth. 
1 9 10- 14 — John S. Duckworth. 



112 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



SURVEYORS. 



1847-52 — Job Hadley. 
1852-54 — Eldred Huff. 
1854-56 — F. M. Johnson. 
1856-58 — Joseph H. Dennis. 
1858-60 — Cyrus Rogers. 
1860-62 — Cyrus Rogers. 
1862-64^ — Cyrus Rogers. 
1864-66 — Cyrus Rogers. 
1866-67 — Homer C. Carpenter. 
1867-70 — Job Hadley. 

yi — Job Hadley. 

74 — Joseph A. Clark. 

76 — Joseph A. Clark. 



1 870 

1872 

1874 

1876-78— Joseph A. Clark. 

1878 

1880 



-80 — Joseph A. Clark. 
-82— Joseph A. Clark. 



1882-84— Charles M. Griggs. 
1884-86— Charles M. Griggs. 
1886-88— John W. Trotter. 
1888-90— John W. Trotter. 
1890-92 — -Joshua Hunt. 
1892-94 — John W. Trotter. 
1894-96 — John W. Trotter. 
1896-98— John W. Trotter. 
i8q8-oo— W. F. Franklin. 
1900-02 — W. F. Franklin. 
1002-04 — W. F. Franklin. 
1904-06 — John W. Figg. 
1006-08 — John W. Figg. 
V 008- 10 — John O. Kain. 
TO 1 0-12 — John O. Kain. 
TO 1 2- 1 4 — Theodore W. Garrison. 



CORONERS. 



1826-28— William Faught. 1864- 

1828-30 — Robert Williams. 1865- 

1830-31 — Read Case. 1866 

1831-33 — William Gregory. 1867- 

1833-35— C. B. Naylor. 1868 

1835-44 — Wesley McKinley. 1870 

1844-45 — Christian C. Nave. 1872- 

1845-47 — Pemberton S. Dickens. 1874 

1847-48— J. S. Harvey. 1876 

1848-50 — Jonathan Irwin. . 1878 

1850-51— Elijah Huff. 1880 

1851-52— Edward S. Meek. 1882 

1852-54— Henry W. Hackley. 1884 

1854-56— John J. McMullen. 1886 

1856-58— Thomas N. Jones. 1888 

1858-60— Thomas N. Jones. 1890 

1860-62 — Samuel L. Hawkins. 1892 

1862-64 — Samuel L. Hawkins. 1S94 



■65 — John R. Armstrong. 

■66 — John Flarrison. 

■67 — John Harrison. 

■68 — S. L. Hawkins. 

-70 — George W. Wayland 

-y2 — C. Ohaver. 

■74 — Warren Ohaver. 

-76 — Elias D. Johnson. 

■78 — William P. Ayers. 

■80 — Benjamin Hayden. 

-82— 

-84- 

-86— Mit Phillips. 

-88— R. F. Harper. 

-90 — B. M. Tomlinson. 

-92 — B. ]\L Tomlinson. 

-94 — Eldridge C. Wills. 

-96— O. H. Barnhill. 



-Eldridge C. Wills. 
William M. Hutchings. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



113- 



1896-98 — William White. 
1898-00 — Henry S. Curtis. 
1900-02 — Henry S. Curtis. 
1902-04 — Henry S. Curtis. 
1904-06 — Henry S. Curtis. 



1906-08 — Henry S. Curtis. 
1908-10 — George G. Allred. 
1 9 10- 1 2 — George G. Allred. 
1912-14 — John D. Hendricks. 



SHERIFFS. 



826-27 — John Dunn. 
827-28 — Samuel Jessup. 
828-31 — Thomas Nichols. 
831-33 — Thomas Nichols. 
833-35— James Siggerson. 
835-36 — James Siggerson. 
836-43 — Edmund Clark. 
843-44— J. D. Parker. 
844-46 — Thomas Nichols. 
846-48 — Thomas Nichols. 
848-50 — James Stutsman. 
850-52 — Samuel Melogue. 
852-54 — Samuel Melogue. 
854-56 — Cornelius Ohaver. 
856-58 — Cornelius Ohaver. 
858-60— Reuben S. Ward. 
860-62 — Thomas Nichols. 
862-64 — Thomas Nichols. 
864-66 — Edmund H. Straughan. 
866-68 — Edmund H. Straughan. 
868-70— William H. Calvert. 
870-72 — William H. Calvert. 



1872-74 — Samuel L. Hawkins. 
1874-76 — Samuel L. Hawkins. 
1876-78 — Asbury Bryant. 
1878-80 — James M. Emmons. 
1 880-82-;— James M. Emmons. 
1 882-84 — Abraham Douglass. 
1884-86— William P. Ayers. 
1886-88 — Woodson Bryant. 
1888-90 — Jonathan S. Marshall. 
1890-92 — William C. Clements. 
1892-94 — John T. Taylor. 
i894-9(^-John T. Bell. 
1896-98— William B. Bryant. 
1898-00 — Henry T. Eaton. 
1900-02 — A. A. Figg. 
1902-04 — A. A. Figg. 
1904-06 — I. J. Mendenhall. 
1906-08 — I. J. Mendenhall. 
1908-10 — John C. Robbins. 
19 10-12 — John W'. Ader. 
1912-14 — James N. Gentry. 



(8) 



CHAPTER XVII. 

MILITARY HISTORY. 



The county of Hendricks is jurly proud of the heroic part played by 
her sons m the great drama of the sixties. The news of Lincohi's nomina- 
tion by the Repubhcan party for the Presidency of the United States was re-' 
ceived with great rejoicing in Hendricks county and particularly in Danville 
the county seat. Early the following spring their rejoicings were changed 
to great nervous excitement. 

The following notice appeared in the newspapers: 

"WAR! WAR! 

"All persons within the county of Hendricks who are subject to mili- 
tary duty are hereby requested and notified to be and appear in Danville on 
Saturday the 20th day of April, 1861. War is on hand and our whole safety 
depends on thorough military organization. 

"J. M. Gregg, 

"Colonel 6th Military Dist." 

Hendricks county had at this time less than seventeen thousand inhabi- 
tants. Under the call for seventy-five thousand volunteers the quota of In- 
diana was fixed at six regiments. The response was hearty from all parts 
of the state and from none more so than in Hendricks. Being but an hour's 
travel by rail from Indianapolis, the first company raised in this county was 
one of the first to be accepted by the United tSates. From that time on the 
county sent enlisted men into the field, until a total of approximately two 
thousand had been enrolled, sixty-five per cent, of the voting strength. 

PRESS COMMENTS. 

Scores of men and women are yet living who remember that awful 
April day when the news came that Sumter had fallen, that Lincoln had 
called for troops, and that, be it long or short, the most terrible of all wars 
a civil war, was upon the people. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. II5 

The issue of the Ledger of Saturday, April 20, 1861, told the story 
locally and generally. Fort Sumter surrendered on the afternoon of April 
13th and this was the first issue after that event. And it appears that so 
great was the excitement that this issue was not printed until Monday, the 
22nd. The news of the attack and fall of Sumter is given in a series of of- 
ficial communications showing the progress of the fight from day to day, the 
last dispatch from Charleston reading : "Fort Sumter has been uncondi- 
tionally surrendered. The fort was taken possession of tonight." 

When the news reached Danville all business was suspended and men 
stood about the streets discussing, almost in a whisper, the future of the 
land. Men doubted if a company could be organized in Danville. Joseph 
S. Miller thought it worth while to try and, going to his law office, he drew 
up a muster roll, signing it himself first. Then he went out on the street and 
name after name was added and public enthusiasm increased with each 
signature. 

Under the heading, "War Spirit of Old Hendricks," the Ledger tells of 
this as follows : 

"The President's call for men was received here on Monday last. On 
Tuesday Joseph S. Miller headed a list of volunteers. On Wednesday the 
Governor was petitioned to appoint Hon. James M. Gregg colonel of the 
county militia. On Thursday his commission came and he gave notice to all 
liable to do military duty to meet him for immediate service and organize the 
militia in every township. On Saturday morning the town was alive with 
people from all parts of the country. The volunteers, numbering over fifty, 
were formed into line before the Odd Fellows' hall and a national flag was 
raised from the roof of the building amid the shouts of the people and the 
roar of musketry. Colonel Gregg then responded to a call for a speech. 
Messrs. Campbell, Colonel Nave, W. L. Gregg, S. A. Russell and V. Lingen- 
felter also spoke and one hundred and eight men enrolled themselves. Their 
captain, James Burgess, was offered and accepted by the governor and they 
leave this evening. In the meanwhile, L. S. Shuler commenced another com- 
pany, continued all day Sunday and this evening will tender a second full 
company to the governor." 

Among those who signed was Warner L. Vestal, editor of the Ledger, 
and his enlistment caused the following to appear in the paper: 

"The editor and proprietor, W. L. Vestal, having volunteered in the 
service of the United States, has put in John Irons as editor and agent dur- 
ing his absence. Four of our compositors, W. P. and George Gregg, J. N. 



Il6 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Vestal and B. B. Freeman, having also volunteered and the Devil, W. H^ 
Carnes, having gone with the captain of the company, the news room is left 
with no other force than the old stand-by, the former foreman, T. O. Thomp- 
son. The ]japcr will probably be behind for an issue or so. But unless an- 
other call is made by the government the Ledger will be on hands as usual 
after all hands have got the hang of the new arrangement." 

That the paper was late in being published is evident, for, although it 
was dated April 20th, the following item concerning the departure of the 
Hendricks county volunteers tells of an event which happened on the 22nd 
as follows : 

"One hundred and eight of as gallant fellows as ever dared to meet a 
foe left our town Monday evening, April 22nd. Hon. James Burgett, cap- 
tain; P. S. Kennedy, Esq., first; Joseph S. Miller, Esq., second; and W. P. 
Gregg, Esq., third lieutenants. Such unanimity of purpose was never wit- 
nessed among our people before. Parties now date this back no further 
than Monday the 15th inst. The bombardment of Fort Sumter proved to be 
a great uniter of parties in this county. In fact, there is but one party, that 
of the Stars and Stripes, in old Hendricks and it is dangerous to avow any 
other principles. So hot have matters become that one fellow here had 
nearly been slaughtered at the meeting here on the 20th inst. by mistake. 
Swords and bayonets flashed around him like lightning and but for prompt 
assistance his life would have been out of him in twenty seconds." 

It is unfortunate for this generation that more of the local scenes are 
not described in the issue of the Ledger, but the excitement was too great, 
the tension too strong to write. Editorially, the Ledger said : 

"It becomes our duty this week to announce the lamentable fact that 
war has been inaugurated in our own country by the rebels of the Confeder- 
ate states. The attack made on Fort Sumter by the rebels was successful. 
]\Iajor Anderson has been compelled to surrender and, however humiliating 
it may seem to others, we can not but regard it as a point gained. We will 
now find out whether we have a government or not. and if we have, woe be 
unto those who have for years been plotting its ruin. The people in this 
part of the country are a unit for the Union. We know no man as a Repub- 
lican, a Douglas or a Breckinridge Democrat. Party lines have been aban- 
doned and, although it has been predicted that in case of an attack upon the 
government the North would be divided and the rebels receive the support 
of a strong party here, we are of the opinion that not one company can be 
found north of Mason and Dixon's line who are willing to assist the traitors. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 1 1? 

The present state of affairs is much to be regretted, but we of the North can 
not help it. For four months every act of aggression, of insult, and inso- 
lence has been done in the secession states against the government and people 
of the American nation, which can possible be conceived except the actual 
.conflict of arms. This has come and henceforth we have to hear the sound 
of war and the combat of battles. The record is made up. The position 
admits of but two sides. He who is not for his country is against it. Let 
every loval heart now rally to the country. Let the flag be borne aloft and 
the battle will end with a victory for the Union, for humanity and the world." 
Elsewhere the Ledger says: "Hon. J. M. Gregg has been commissioned 
by the governor as colonel of the sixth military district of Indiana. Mr. 
Gre-- is a Democrat and was delegate to the Charleston convention. In this 
hourof our country's distress we are glad to see that all party lines are 
obliterated and that all go for the glorious flag and Union which have con- 
ferred so many blessings upon us as a people. The appointment of Mr. 
Gregg is a good one and he will do all in his power to enforce the laws and 

sustain the union." 

The Ledger also savs : "On Tuesday (the i6th) an effort was made to 

-organize a company of militia here to be tendered to the governor for the 
n.aintenance of the government and the enforcement of the laws. Before 
night twentv-six men were enrolled. At the meeting Tusday night several 
more signified their willingness to serve their country and the company will 
soon be\nade up. Wednesday morning another meeting was held and the 
companv proceeded to the election of temporary officers. The band played 
martial music and everything was astir. After marching around to the com- 
mons east of town Captain Kennedy proceeded to drill the new company. 
Colonal Nave's hall was secured and there in the evening the company 
drilled again. The greatest excitement and enthusiasm prevails and all men 
of all parties are determined the government shall be sustained at all haz- 
ards. The stars and stripes are floating from stores, offices and other 

buildings." 

Local mention is made of the marriage on Sunday, April 21st, of George 
Gregg and Miss Annie Vawter and Charles F. Hogate and Miss Julia De- 
pew'"' The Ledger savs : "The boys left with their company for the national 
service the following day, leaving their newly-made wives praying for their 

safe return." 

The original muster roll of this first company from Danville, the one 
Tised at Indianapolis April 24th when the company was sworn into the serv- 
ice of the United States, is as follows : 



' HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



It bears the names of James Burgess, captain; Peter S. Kennedy first 
neutenant: Joseph S. Miller, second lieutenant; Charles F, Hogate, Oriin A 
Bartholou,ew. Will C. Banta, Warner L, Vestal, sergeants- Joseph B Ho 
man William M. Walker, Virgil H. Lyon, Hubbard B. LingenfeUet cor-" 
pora s, M.Itiades Cash, drummer; James Landon, fifer; Joseph Allison, Sam- 
nel .\rn,strong. A. Beard, William Bar.ley. James J. Beyy, Americus Bland, 
.(efterson J. Bolt, S.meon Buchanan, Franklin J. Burcham. Jesse T. Burhop 
.-Albert S. Burgan, Dennis Brewer. Harrison Brown. Benjamin A Cord 
ame,, M. Crane Thomas J. Crane, Jonathan P. Curtis, Robert M Cu ds' 
Jolrn En,mons, Allen C. Evans, James C. Faulkner, George Filer Robert V 
Frankhn Brook B. Freeman, James P. Gilland. Jeremith Giv^irCeorge 
Gregg Wdham P. Gregg, James Hackley, Joseph Hackley, Jacob N Holts- 
chw. Mars all Holtsclaw, William G. Roman, Erastus E Hunt, Fra"k H. 
Hu on. W.lhan, W. Irons, William M. Jenkins, Moses Kebner, Thomas J 

Vil t r Z\t °r t"T'- J"™^ "■■ ^'^'"^'^' ^'5"'"'> S. McCormick-; 
W ,ll,am T. Mdler, John S. Moore, John O'Haver, Willian, E. Parker Will- 

cus D. L. Rob,ns, Madison H. Rose, James Scearce, John T. Scearce. Nathan 
J. Scearce, John W. Smith, William D. Smith, Charles Stephen, Joshua C 
Thompson Orlando Todd. John N. Vesta' Jonathan Wadley, John C 
Walker, Alfred Welshans. ■ 

ONE HUNDRED AND THIRD INDIANA VOLUNTEER INFANTRV 

comn?an/"'f''r • 'Tt "T.T"'" '° ^"'"'"" "^"' ' ''''^Se rebel force under 
command of Gen. John H. Morgan had crossed the Ohio river near Mauc'. 

Tea Unc'i-h™" "'i °" "Tr"™' '""■^"" ^°™-"™^ *'-'- ^' °"- -"«' 

se vice Th ir '"'' '" "'""■''' "'"""^" '"^" ''-' '"«'-«' '^eir 

services. Th rteen regiments and one battalion were organized for the 

emergency. In the second of these, known as the One Hundred and "1,1"^ 

were .seven companies from Hendricks county. The regiment left In iat 

apohs by rad on the evening of July i ith and reached vJnon the next mo n- 

mg at three o'clock^ Here Colonel Shuler impressed a number of hor s 

a^id moun mg one hundred and forty-six men from his own command an 

n sight of Mo '"'' '• ™°T' '■" """"" °' ■''°^>"^"- These troops came 

m sight of Morgan s rear guard on the afternoon of the 13th, captured -everal 

tragglers, skirmished with detachments of the enemv n ar H rrison'oho 
and entered that town shortly after Morgan's rear guard ha.l" ,ep«e ' 
Next mornuig the pursuit was resn,ue<l and contiuue.I as far as Batavia O uo 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 1 19 

when, upon learning of Morgan's capture, the command returned to Indian- 
apolis and was mustered out July i6th. 

Lawrence S. Shuler was a colonel; Virgil H. Lyon, lieutenant-colonel; 
Samuel J. Banta, major; and Frank Coons, adjutant, were the higher officers 
in this regiment. Other officers were William H. Calvert, Richard Duddy, 
Tyra Montgomery, John Franklin, William M. Brown, William Little, 
Aquilla S. McCormick, Joseph Wood, Jesse S. Ogden, Joseph O'Haver, Rob- 
ert Curry, William F. Parker, Joseph Allison, James L. Smith, Erastus F. 
Hunt, Scott Miller, David T. Cox. 

NUMBER OF ENLISTMENTS. 

The following will show the number of men from Hendricks county and 
the companies and regiments in which they served during the Civil War. 
These figures are compiled from Adjutant-General Terrell's reports and in- 
clude re-enlistments and substitutions, so that the list is not exactly true, but 
as much so as possible to obtain. 

Ahtmbr'r 
Regiment. Company. of Men. 

Seventh (three months) A yy 

Seventh (three years) B no 

Seventh (three years) H io8 

Seventh (three years) I 44 

Eighth _., B 2 

Eleventh 19 

Thirteenth i 

Seventeenth 2 

Eighteenth H i 

Twentieth F 2 

Twentieth G 4 

Twentieth H 2 

Twenty-first E t^2 

Twenty-sixth A 2 

Forty-seventh i 

Fifty-first A 106 

Fifty-first C 78 

Fifty-first K 8 

Fifty-third A 62 

Fifty-fourth (three months) H 84 



^-° HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 

„ . Kiimbcr 

Rcgu,,cnt Com^n: „/,/,,„, 

f^ifty-fonrth (one year) __ p 



Fiftv-fiftli (three months) q 



87 
2 



Fifty-ninth __ g 

Seventieth v 

Seventieth tt 

Seventieth r- 

iv OC 

Fourth Cavalry (Seventy-seventh Regiment) ___" 

Seventy-eighth p ^ 

Seventy-ninth ^ ^ 

Seventy-ninth _ p ^ 

vSeventy-ninth t- ^ 

Ninety-eighth P ^"^ 

Ninety-eighth _l__l_ H ^^ 

One Hundred Seventeenth j^_ ^^ 

One Hundred Seventeenth 3~ ^°° 

Ninth Cavalrv __ t ^°^ 

1 Q-, 

One Hundred Twenty-fourth P) ~~~ ~ 

One Hundred Thirty-second H~~~~~~ t 

One Hundred Forty-eighth ^^ * ' 

One Hundred Forty-eighth g J' 

One Hundred Forty-eighth q ° 

One Hundred Forty-eighth ]j ^'^ 

One Hundred Forty-eighth p ^ 

One Hundred Forty-eighth ~~ p '^^ 

One Hundred Forty-eighth q '^ 

One Flundred Forty-eighth pj ^^ 

One Hundred Forty-eighth j "' 

One Flundred Forty-eighth j- "° 

Eighth U. S, Colored Infantrv ..._._ ^ ^t 

7 

Total 

COMMISSIONED OFFICERS. 

and Ytlvr^"'^ ^^"^''"""'' ^'"^'^ ^'''^''' '''' ^ ^^^1^^^-^"^^ P- S- Kennedv 
and J S. Miller, lieutenants; and in the three-vears service ^^' C Banta was 

captain, A. M. Luke, V. H. Lvon T V H.diev T W '', ^".^^"'^ ''''' 
, XX. j^yun, J. V. naciiev, j. VV. yvdams, lieutenants; 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 121 

in Company H, S. J. Banta and E. D. Bryant were captains, M. D. L. Rob- 
bins, Jonathan Wadley and R. M. Curtis were lieutenants. In Company F 
of the Twetieth, John Kistler was a captain. In Company A of the Twenty- 
seventh, Samuel Porter and J. F. Parsons were lieutenants. In the Fifty- 
first, W. W. Scearce, J. W. Sheets. J, H. Fleece, Milton Russell. J. A. Givins, 
Samuel Lingerman. D. W. Hamilton, George Gregg and G. H. Adams were 
captains ; W. A. Adair. John Emmons, Harvey Slavens. W. H. Harvey, A. T. 
Dooley, C. E. Stephens and George W. Scearce were lieutenants. In the 
Fifty-third, W. L. Vestal was a colonel; H. C. Perkins, adjutant; J. W. 
Scearce, adjutant; Robert Curry, captain; W. D. Smith, lieutenant. In the 
Fifty-fourth (three months), J. H. Gray was captain of Company H; J. W. 
Lakin and T. J. Kirtley, lieutenants. In the one-year service of this regi- 
ment W. H. Neff was commissioned captain ; D. D. Jones and B. F. Davis, 
lieutenants. In the Fifty-fifth, Frank A. Coons was a lieutenant, but later 
became captain in the One Hundred and Thirty-eighth. In Company B of 
the Fifty-ninth, W. A. Rogers and S. W. Minter were lieutenants. In the Sev- 
entieth, James Burgess became colonel and Leroy H. Kennedy was surgeon; 
in Company A. Z. S. Ragan and W. C. Mitchell were captains ; J. M. Rogers. 
J. F. Banta and J. J. Wills were lieutenants. In Company K, J. T. Matlock 
and J. C. Hadley were captains and O. A. Bartholomew was lieutenant. In 
the Fourth Cavalry, L. S. Shuler became a colonel; T. R.Xawhead. adjutant: 
Flenry Cox, surgeon; J. W. Smith, captain; William Irvin and J. W. Tinder, 
lieutenants. In Company E of the Seventy-eighth, A. J. Lee was commis- 
sioned captain; Snoddy Anderson and John Harrison, lieutenants. In Com- 
pany C of the Seventy-ninth, Eli F. Ritter was a captain; in Company F, 
Benjamin T. Poynter was a lieutenant; in Company K. J. W. Jordan and 
D. W. Hoadley were captains ; Tyra Montgomery and A. T. Stone, lieuten- 
ants. In the Ninety-eighth, J. B. Homan. Tilberry Reid, John ^^'orrel and 
B. F. Thomas were captains ; L. D. Robinson, surgeon ; J. C. Hussey. B. A. 
Reid, lieutenants. In Company H of this regiment, J. F. Parsons and 
Nehemiah Rawlings were lieutenants. In Company A of the One Hundred 
Seventeenth, Isaac Wantland was captain ; T. J. Kirtley and J. H. Harris, lieu- 
tenants. In Company B, W. S. King was captain ; T. S. Marshall and C. F. 
Hogate, lieutenants. In Company I of the Ninth Cavalry, V. H. Lyon, 
William Robbins and T. J. Cofer were captains; W. H. Calvert. J. S. Watts 
and T. J. Conaty, lieutenants. In Company D of the Hundred and Twenty- 
fourth, John Kistler. Van L. Parsons, M. K. Stanley and A. M. Williams 
were lieutenants. In Company H of the One Hundred and Thirty-second, 



122 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

W. S. King was a captain and Z. K. McCormack and J. M. Emmons, lieu- 
tenants. In Company B of the One Hundred Forty-eighth, J. H. McClure 
and E. M. Woody were Heutenants; in Company C, R. M. Curtis was a 
captain ; N. T. Scearce and M. D. L. Brown were lieutenants ; in Company K, 
S. J. Banta and J. M. Odell were captain and lieutenant respectively. 

BOUNTY AND RELIEF. 

The county gave bounties to volunteers during the war amounting in all 
to $27,750, while the several townships paid the following amounts: Centei, 
$16,000; Washington, $30,000; Liberty, $35,000; Franklin, $10,000; Clay, 
$20,000; Marion, $36,000; Eel River, $45,000; Union, $20,000; Lincoln, 
$10,000; Brown, $21,500. This made a total of $266,250. 

Not content with this, the local authorities also resolved to care for the 
needy families of volunteers and for this purpose the county appropriated at 
various times amounts aggregating $50,200. Each of ten townships con- 
tributed $1,000. 

The relief work at home was energetic and prompt. Whenever money 
could not be obtained by asking, it was appropriated. 

DRAFT. 

A draft became necessary in Indiana in the fall of 1862, and the enroll- 
ing connnission made the following report for Hendricks county : Total 
mihtia, 2,443; total volunteers, 1,352; total exempts, 506; total conscientiously 
opposed to bearing arms, 150; total volunteers in service, 1,271 ; total subject 
to draft, 1,787. But two townships in this county were behind in their quotas, 
Union and Eel river. The former was required to supply nine and the latter 
twenty-three to this draft. 

SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR. 

Hendricks county did not supply a full company to the Indiana militia 
during the Spanish-American war. The declaration of war by Congress 
and President McKinley's call for troops in the month of April, 1898, brought 
great excitement to the county and many recollections of the days of '61. 

On Friday night, April 22, 1898, an immense crowd gathered in the 
court room at Danville. The college band played lively airs and a Cuban 
flag waved from the gallery. Solon Enloe called the mass meeting to order 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. I23 

and Judge John V. Hadley was elected chairman, following which election 
the latter made an address. Enloe followed, then George C. Harvey, C. W. 
Stewart, Thad S. Adams, O. E. Giilley and Messrs. Hack, Lane and Young 
of the Central Normal College. Solon Enloe then moved that a roll be pre- 
pared for those who were prepared and willing to go the front. While the 
band played patriotic airs and Judge Hadley waved the flag, one hundred 
names were affixed to the roll. A committee was appointed consisting of 
Enloe, Harvey and Julian D. Hogate, and these men went to Indianapolis to 
inform the Governor that they were ready. 

Some disagreement in the election of officers resulted in the disbanding 
of the company. The men most eager to serve their country and flag, how- 
ever, were not to be thwarted, so they went to Indianapolis and enlisted. They 
were sworn in on Tnesday night. May loth, and that night returned home to 
say good-bye. The public responded and accorded them a reception and ban- 
quet. A list of the men, mo^t of them in the Second Regiment, who went from 
Hendricks county to the war follows : E. M. Swindler, O. C). Marshall, 
Charles Sims, J. M. Gregg, R. D. Warner, Oliver Sears, Walter Thomas, 
Aquilla Miles, Rome Phillips, Frank H. King, Albert Ayres, David Stutes- 
man. Claude Adams, Herschell Hall, Solon Enloe. Guy Roach. Edgar Penn- 
ington, Fitz Roberts, Oat Johnson, J. W. Estep. Ralph Beauchamp, Orlando 
Davis, Clark Howell, Charles Temple, Harry Stephenson, J. Bolen, Sigel 
Bolen, James Bowen, William King. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

HISTORY OF JOURNALISM. 



THE EARLY NEWSPAPER. 

In this clay of huge metropolitan newspapers and up-to-the-minute news 
•stories, it is hard to realize the handicap under which the newspaper of fifty, 
■ or even thirty, years ago labored. Facilities for receiving and publishing 
news had not reached the point of perfection attained today. The editor of 
today is a business man, a manager, a news medium; years ago he was a 
moulder of pul)lic opinion, a controller of local politics. The paper was 
known by the editor, but n(nv the editor is known by the paper. Crude hand 
presses, meager supply of type and other simple paraphernalia of the earlv 
printing shops have gi\'en way to the linotype, power presses which turn out 
over a hundred papers a minute read}' for the subscriber, and other wonderful 
inventions and methods used in modern newspaper ])roduction. 

In Hendricks county the growth of the newspaper has been verv sub- 
stantial, although it has been retarded by the close proximity of Indianapolis 
and the large dailies there. The resident of Danville and other larger town- 
ships is enabled to receive the city paper almost as soon as a local edition. 
The papers in Hendricks county have been restricted to weekly editions due 
to this fact alone, for otherwise the population and interest of the county 
would warrant more frequent issues. 

BEGINNINGS IN HENDRICKS COUNTY. 

The year 1846 saw the beginning of journalism in Hendricks county. 
In the spring of that year the Danville Advertiser was established, with 
Joseph Graham as publisher and Dr. H. G. Todd as editor. Doctor Todd 
and several other enterprising citizens bought the press and gave it to Mr. 
Graham for the sole purpose of giving the town of Danville a newspaper. 
In size, the Advertiser was a six-column folio, composed almost exclusively 
*oi reading matter. Very little advertising matter found its way into the 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. I25 

sheet. Politically, the paper was Whig. The paper was established to pro- 
mote the interests of this party and it continued so during the period of its 
existence. After a few years, the paper changed hands and from then on. 
had a varied career, having several owners, appearing under several names, 
until 1856, when it came out as the Danville Republican. Under this title it 
was issued until the spring of 1864. 

HENDRICKS COUNTY UNION. 

On the day of April 23, 1856, the first issue of the Hendricks County 
Union was published by W. P. Gregg & Company. The paper was decidedly 
in favor of war. At the top of its first page it printed each day, "To preserve 
the Union, soldiers must fight at elections as well as fight in the field." The 
name Union was selected instead of Republican in order to gain the support 
of the war Democrats, which in large measure it accomplished. The paper was 
under splendid editorial management and met success from the very start. The 
above mentioned firm continued to publish this paper until July 14, 1856, when 
Col. Lawrence S. Shuler, a soldier, became sole proprietor, with Col. James M. 
Gregg as editor and Gideon B. Thompson in charge of the local department 
and assistant in the management of the business. Colonel Shuler continued 
to publish the paper until April 20, 1865, when he sold it to James L. Singer, 
who became editor and publisher and remained as proprietor of the news- 
paper until March 15, 1866, at which time John N. Scearce bought the office. 
Mr. Scearce continued in charge for over thirteen years and changed the. 
name of the paper to the 

DANVILLE UNION. 

Under Scearce's management the paper had a very prosperous career. 
During a part of this time Dr. A. Furnas was agricultural editor and con- 
tributed largely to the value and interest of the paper. In 1866 O. H. Smith, 
was educational editor. On the 2nd of January, 1879, Mr. Scearce sold the 
Union to J. E. Sherrill, who had begun the publication of the Danville Repub- 
lican. Sherrill merged the Union into the Republican, but the new paper was- 
of short life. On January 30, 1879, less than one month after the suspen- 
sion of the Danville Union, another Hendricks County Union came into ex- 
istence. 

The new firm was South, Hathaway & Company, and the paper at once: 
struck the public favorably, there being something of advantage in the old 
name Union. In a few weeks Mr. Sherrill sold his Republican ofiice and busi- 



126 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ness to the new Union firm, S. F. Wishard anr] James B. Greene being added 
to the proprietors. A. G. South soon left the company and in a few months 
Mr. Greene also retired, the paper being continued by Hathaway and Wish- 
ard. On August 4th of the same year Mr. Wishard sold his share to John 
R. Rankin and Hathaway and Rankin were proprietors until November 7th, 
when O. H. Smith bought out the interest of Mr. Rankin. Smith became 
editor and in December, 1880, bought out Robert F. Hathaway's share of the 
paper, thus becoming sole editor and proprietor. On February 11, 1882, he 
sold to Parker & Bowen of the Republican, who continued to issue the Union 
from their office for about two months on account of certain advertising 
contracts. 

HENDRICKS COUNTY REPUBLICAN. 

Mr. Bowen and J. O. Parker had established the paper known as the 
Hendricks County Republican on the 13th day of October, 1881. This 
paper is now, after an existence of over thirty-three years, the leading paper 
of Danville. On February 10, 1883, Mr. Bowen sold his interest in the 
office to William N. Crabb and the paper was published by Crabb and Parker, 
with Mr. Parker as editor and manager until the month of April, 1883. 
After Mr. Bowen's departure Samuel F. Wishard was local editor for one 
year. In March, 1884, Mr. Bowen returned to the paper, with which he 
was connected as local editor until April, 1885. In this month Crabb and 
Parker sold to Moffett and Riddle, who continued the publication to good ad- 
vantage. John C. Ochiltree was the next proprietor, followed in the year 
1890 by Julian D. Hogate. who, in 1914, is still successfully publishing the 
Republican. It is the leading newspaper in the county, having a circulation 
of about eighteen hundred. It is a six-column quarto, issued Thursday of 
each week. The paper is neat in appearance and is strictly a news sheet. 
The Republican plant turns out a quantity of high class job printing in con- 
nection with the issue of the paper. 

OTHER DANVILLE PAPERS. 

Two newspapers were at one time moved to Danville from the town of 
Plainfield. Both papers bore the name Progress. The first was in 1877 by 
John N. Vestal, who suspended after six months, and the second occasion 
was in May, 1883, when George V. Mechler made a like venture. He, too, 
found the venture unsuccessful. 

The Democratic party has been represented editorially in Danville. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 12/ 

The first newspaper of that poHtical faith bore the sanguinary title of The 
Butcher Knife. It was founded in 1856 by George Gregg. Four years 
completed the life of this sheet and it died amidst the strong Union sentiment 
at the opening of the Civil war. 

The Danznlle Indianian was established in 1870 by a group of men from 
Greensburg. Soon after it became the property of a stock company and 
afterward, for a time, it was in charge of Doctor Haggart, who was followed 
by two brothers named Ray. In 1872 the office was purchased by C. N. 
Walls, who remained in control until the fall of 1875, when the office and 
material were sold and transported into Illinois. 

In February of the year 1878 E. D. King established the Democrat and 
remained as its editor and publisher until August, 1879, building up a strong 
and influential paper. At the latter date mentioned he sold the office to M. 
A. Bamett, who, in turn, closed out the office in October, 1881, to James O. 
Parker of the Republican. Just prior to this, E. D. King returned from a 
year's trip in Colorado and founded, on September 15, 1880. the 

HENDRICKS COUNTY GAZETTE, 

which is now the leading Democratic paper of the county. The paper was 
started during a presidential campaign and found a fertile field in which to 
grow. It at once assumed an important position and today (1914) it still 
holds that reputation. At one time its editor was indicted for libel under 
the Grubbs law, but so obviously unfair was the action of the partisan grand 
jury that Mr. King was never brought to trial, the judge of the court quash- 
ing the indictment and throwing the case out. In August, 1882, E. D. King 
retired from the managerial helm of the Gazette and from then until August 
I, 1884, it passed through the hands of several proprietors. At that date it 
came into possession of William A. King and John W. Cravens. Cravens 
disposed of his interest in a few months and Mr. King became sole proprietor. 
He holds this position today, after thirty years of valiant service for the 
Democratic party. Just at present he holds the office of postmaster of Dan- 
ville, in connection with his editorial duties. The paper is a weekly, published 
on Thursday, being a six-column quarto and with eleven hundred subscribers. 
The paper has been uniformly successful throughout the many years of its 
existence. High class job printing is also made a specialty at the Gazette 
plant. 



128 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

PLAINFIELD PAPERS. 

There have been ahnost as many papers started in the town of Plain- 
field as there ha\e been in Danville. The tirst one was called Once A Week,. 
being founded by John A. Deem in 1862. After a short run this was sus- 
pended. John N. Vestal afterward attempted to make the paper a success 
under the name of the Citizen. After publishing it for some time, he sold 
it to Charles S. McNichols. who issued a paper for a period under the name 
of the Tribune. 

PLAINFIELD PROGRESS. 

On January i, 1879, George V. Alechler established the Plain field 
Progress, which he ran successfully for several years. Mechler was a Demo- 
crat of the first water and the community was Republican, so he compromised 
and published his paper as an independent sheet. In this venture he was suc- 
cessful and, thinking to gain more prestige at the county seat, he removed 
to Danville in May, 1883. At this place he w^as soon obliged to suspend 
publication. Immediately after his removal Horace G. Douglass and J. A. 
Fullen began the issue of a paper under the old name of the Plainfield Prog- 
ress. These men issued their first number on May 31, 1883. Fullen with- 
drew after a time and moved west. Douglass retained control, however, 
until May 12, 1884, when he obtained an appointment at the Reform School 
and sold the office to A. T. Harrison. The Progress was at this time a five- 
column quarto. This paper was pu1:)lished until September 5, 1904, at 
which time it was succeeded by the 

FRIDAY CALLER, 

established by P. W. Raidabaugh. From May, 1910. until June. 1912, C. C. 
Cumberwrite had control of the paper. At the latter date Fred E. Warner 
became the editor and proprietor and is still in this position. The paper has 
a general circulation, is six column, eight page in style, and is Republican. 

NORTH SALEM NEWSPAPERS. 

J. J. and H. E. Hennon came from Roachdale, Putnam county, in July, 
1884, and until March, 1885, published the Xorth Salem Reporter. This 
was a six-column quarto, independent in politics. In the month last men- 
tioned, however, Messrs. Hennon returned to Roachdale. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 



129 



111 1892 the North Salem Herald was established as an independent 
newspaper. It is stil] in operation, a weekly six-colnmn quarto, and is edited 
by John H. Wetz, who took charge January i, 1914. Previous to this date 
Samuel Sherman Waters held the office of editor. The paper has a circula- 
tion of five hundred. 

THE CLAYTON WEEKLY PRESS. 

The Clayton Weekly Press was established on January 6, 1914, suc- 
ceeding the Clayton Enterprise. The Enterprise had been established by a 
Mr. McDaniel, and was later owned successively by Harrison F. Weesner, 
then by H. E. and Paul Hathaway. The Clayton Weekly Press is an inde- 
pendent Democratic paper, with a circulation of six hundred. The paper is 
an eight-page quarto, patent insides. Cal Sinninger is the editor and owner 
of the paper. 

BROWNSBURG RECORD. 

In the year 1881 A. S. Clements established a paper in Brownsburg 
known as The Modern Era. It then changed to the name Brozimsbiirg 
Courier, and later to the present title. It is a very prosperous paper in 1914, 
with a circulation of approximately one thousand. It is a six-column quarto, 
independent in politics, and is issued weekly by U. S. Watson, the editor and 
publisher. Previous to Mr. Watson's management Charles A. Sedgwick, 
Walter Burns, Carey Gaston, John R. Sheehan, G. A. Johnson and Charles 
A. Hughes presided over the destinies of the paper. Mr. Watson assumed 
control on June 10, 19 12. 

RELIGIOUS PUBLICATIONS. 

There have been quite a number of religious publications issued in 
Hendricks county within the past years, most of them devoted to the Friends 
denomination. There was the Friends Bible School Teacher, with twenty- 
five hundred circulation, a quarterly magazine of sixty-four pages for Sun- 
day school superintendents and teachers; the Friends Advanced Quarterly, 
thirty-two pages, with a circulation of seventeen thousand, for the main body 
of the Sunday schools; the Friends Intermediate Quarterly for younger 
classes in the Sunday school, thirty-two pages and seven thousand circula- 
tion ; the Friends Lesson Sheet, weekly, two pages, forty-five hundred circu- 
(9) 



130 HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 

lation, for general study in Bible schools; the Youth's Friend, eight pages, 
illustrated weekly for young people, seventeen hundred circulation; Child's 
Lesson Leaf, for the primary department of the Sunday school, four-page 
weekly, thirty-two hundred circulation. The Africa Record, eight pages, 
missionary information, published quarterly, and with fifty-five hundred 
circulation. 

These publications were all edited and published by P. W. Raidabaugh 
and were moved to Plainfield from Chicago in 1901, and were transferred 
to the American Friends Bible School Board, located at Fairmount, Indi- 
ana, on January i, 19 14. 

THE PITTSBORO SUN. 

The Pittsboro Sun was established in January, 1893, by Frank C. Har- 
rell. It was bought by E. C. Weaver during its first year of life. He placed 
it on a firm basis. On December 25. 1898, Samuel James became the owner, 
remaining in charge until June, 191 1, when he sold to Evart Watson, a young 
man who made good in the twenty months that he conducted the paper. In 
February, 1913, the Sun again changed hands, Gregory Walden, of Howell, 
Michigan, becoming its publisher. 



CHAPTER XIX. 



THE MEDICAL PROFESSION. 



The medical profession in Hendricks county had its beginning before the 
organization of the county, for of all the professions in which man is en- 
gaged that of medicine is the first demanded. True it is that great progress 
has been made in the science since its introduction into Hendricks county, but 
nevertheless, the early patient probably had as much confidence in the methods 
of the pioneer physician as the present-day patient has in the most advanced 
methods. Trust and dread did occasionally go h^nd in hand in administra- 
tion of the first doctor's treatment. There was the lancet, to take from the 
patient all the blood he could spare and still live, hoping thereby to destroy 
the tenement of the demon disease and force him to seek some other abode. 
Another indispensable remedy was, "the Spanish-fly blister." w^hich was 
applied on the same theory, indiscriminately upon adult and child. Calomel 
and blue-pills were common remedies for most diseases determined by the 
doctor's diagnosis, and a sure remedy when the doctor's diagnosis left un- 
certainty in his mind. To work out of the human system the calomel and 
blue-pills, after they had done their savage work, gamboge, castor-oil and 
senna, one or all of them, w^ere freely administered. The accepted theory 
of the profession at that early day was if the patient survived the first course, 
it was soon repeated until the patient, in the opinion of the doctor, was only 
suffering from the remedies. The surgeon in those early days of frontier life 
ranked with the skilled carpenter and blacksmith. In fact, the former made 
the doctor's splints and other appliances of wood, and the latter made his 
operative cutlery, forceps and other implements of steel. 

If the physician in those early days, with his multiplied trials to con- 
tend with and groping in the darkness, could become enthusiastic in his 
efforts to carry conviction to others, what might be his exulting joy now, since 
the light of intervening years of scientific progress and investigation has so 
changed the theory of disease and remedies. Both medicine and surgery have 
made greater progress in harmony wnth scientic truth in tb.e last half century 
than during all previous history. Medicine, however, with its component 
sciences and surgery, is not alone in this rapid and wonderful progress, which 



132 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 



is world wide, but there has l)een a general awakening- in the world of thought 
during this recent period, discovering and inventing the most wonderful aids 
to modern life. ^Ve can Ijut marx'el when we endeavor to tabulate the in- 
numerable lists. This revolution has placed medicine, as a profession, a long 
way on the road of science. As nature, with its most intricate vital forces, 
is the sui)erior physician and first in charge of every case of human disal^ility, 
the present doctor is now on such friendly terms with nature that he lends 
rational assistance to his su])erior and thereby gives most welcome aid to the 
atiHicted. 

HENDRICKS COUNTY MEDICAL SOCIETY. 

On the 29th day of April. 1854, the medical society of Hendricks county 
was organized at Danville. The doctors signing the constitution were Henry 
G. Todd, D. J. Depew, J. A. Comingor, David Todd, Risdoii C. Moore, 
Henry H. Moore. Thomas P. Seller, Wilson Lockhart, J. Joel Wright, Le- 
roy H. Kennedy, Thomas B. Harvey, Henry Cox. B. Bartholomew and W. 
F. Harvey. Henry G. Todd was elected the first president; Wilson Lock- 
hart, vice-president ; J. Joel Wright, secretary ; Leroy H. Kennedy, corres- 
ponding secretary ; Henry Cox. treasurer ; Thomas B. Harvey, Bradley Bar- 
tholomew, Henry H. Moore, censors. 

The constitution was as follows : "We, the undersigned practitioners 
of medicine and surgery in the county of Hendricks and vicinity, for the pur- 
pose of promoting harmony and good fellowship, and of elevating the cause 
of medical and collateral science, associate ourselves under the following 
constitution : 

"Article i. This association shall be denominated the Hendricks County 
Medical Society. 

"Art. 2. The officers of this society shall consist of a president, vice- 
president, recording secretary, corresponding secretary, treasurer and three 
censors, all of whom shall be elected by ballot, annually, and each officer 
shall ser\-e until his successor is duly installed into office. 

"Art. 3. Any regular and reputable practitioner of medicine may be- 
come a member of this society, by signing the constitution, paying into the 
treasury two dollars, and complying with such other regulations as may 
be hereafter provided by law. 

"Art. 4. Any distinguished literary gentleman may become an honorary 
member of this society, by a vote of two-thirds of the members present at any 
regular meeting; provided that notice to that effect had been given at any 
previous meeting of the society. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. I33 

"Art. 5. The society shall have power to form a library and a cabinet 
of specimens, in the various departments of natural science, and pathologi- 
cal specimens and illustrations, both from the donations of individuals and 
other societies, and by levying taxes and fines, agreeable to the regulations 
which may be hereafter provided by law. 

"Art. 6. This society may open a correspondence with similar associa- 
tions in this state and such others as it may from time to time direct. 

"Art. 7. This society shall meet at such times and places and engage 
in such deliberations as may from time to time be agreed upon, and may 
enact by-laws for its government, not inconsistent with this constitution. 

"Art. 8. The society may admit honorary members upon compliance of 
the applicant with the same forms as are prescribed for the admission of 
bona fide members, except that no initiatory fee shall be recjuired. He shall 
not be permitted to vote, nor shall he participate in any of the proceedings, 
except by express permission of the society. 

"Art. 9. One-third of all the members shall constitute a quorum for 
the transaction of business, but on all subjects involving the rights, interests 
or standing of any member, a majority of all the members shall be present. 

"Art. 10. This constitution may be amended at an_Y stated meeting 
of the society, by a vote of two-thirds of the members present ; provided, 
the amendment has been prosposed, in writing, at a previous meeting." 

PROGRESS OF SOCIETY. 

The society continued from year to year until the opening of the Civil 
\\'ar, when, most of the members having enlisted, so few were left to hold 
meetings that they were discontinued until the year 1866, when the times 
for its regular meetings, specified in its by-laws, were observed, and have 
been ever since. 

At the annual meeting of the State Medical Society, in 1872, as a basis 
on which to organize this society under the statute relating to voluntary 
associations, passed resolutions providing for the incorporation of county 
medical societies. It was not, however, until the annual meeting of 1875 that 
the requisite number, twelve counties, reported to the secretary of the state 
society. The state society, now having adopted the delegate system of rep- 
resentation from incorporated auxiliary county societies, the Hendricks 
County Medical Society, at one of its regular meetings, in the year 1875, 
changed its constitution, as was thought, to comply with the state society. 
The delegates from the Hendricks county societv were admitted at the 



134 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

annual state meeting in 1876. However, the constitution of the Hendricks 
society was defective in regard to its seal. When this fact became known, 
most of the physicians of the county who were not meml^ers of this society 
organized a new society, and, as a result, at the annual state meeting in 1877 
there were two sets of delegates, each claiming" to represent the Hendricks 
County Medical Society. The committee appointed to straighten out the 
matter took cognizance of the fact that the old society in Hendricks had acted 
on good faith and the mistakes in the constitution were not voluntary ; there- 
fore they allowed the old society to continue, after that trouble had been 
remedied and the constitution rewritten. 

Before 1890 the physicians who had been enrolled upon the books of the 
society were T. J. Adams, B. Bartholomew, J. T. Barker, J. H. Brill, J. 
A. Comingor, Henry Cox, Amos Carter, D. J. Depew, A. Davidson, T. F. 
Dryden, M. F. Depew, C. R. Dixon, J. A. Eastman, T. Evans, Thomas E. 
Ellis, F. C. Ferguson, C. E. Farabee, J- N. Green, Thomas C. Graham, 
Thomas B. Harvey, W. F. Harvey, W. J. Hoadley, A. Heavenridge. G. H. 
F. House, G. K. Hurt, L. H. Kennedy, Wilson Lockhart, W. T. Lawson, 
H. H. Moore, R. C. Moore, B. Mendenhall, J. W. Mansbridge, J. H. Orear, 
J. A. Osborne, J. H. Oscar, M. G. Parker, J. S. Ragan, Thomas R. Seller, 
F. W. Smith, H. C. Summers, J. T. Strong, H. G. Todd, David Todd, R. 
C. Talbott, J. J. Wright, J. F. White, C. A. White. 

PRESENT-DAY PHYSICIANS. 

In the list of present-day physicians, as compiled by the state society, 
the following are serving their profession in Hendricks county : 

George G. Allred, Joel T. Barker, Thomas R. Barker, Thomas J. 
Beasley, W. J. Hoadley. F. H. Huron, Wilson T. Lawson, W. M. O'Brien, 
Mary A. Soper, Charles A. Underwood, Charles A. White, of Danville; A. 
P. W. Bridges, Amos Carter, Ernest Cooper, John S. Ragan, James C. 
Stafford, Clarkson B. Thomas, of Plainfield ; M. W. Brooks, A. K. Gilbert. 
R. E. Jones, D. Monroe Reynolds, of Clayton; James P. Cope, of Bridge- 
port ; A. W. Davidson, John L. Marsh, A. E. Rhein, Thomas G. Smith, of 
Brownsburg; John S. French, William H. Harrison, E. F. King, Oscar T. 
Scamahorn, William H. Terrell, of Pittsboro; Alexander Hamilton, of Car- 
tersburg; John D. Hendricks, of Lizton ; Leora F. Hicks, Benjamin F. Little, 
Thomas J. O'Brien, of Stilesville; Charles F. Hope, Stephen Hunt, U. S. 
Wright, of Coatesville; Maria A. Jessup. of Friendswood: Charles A. AIc- 
Clure, of Belleville; B. M. O'Brien, of New Winchester; E. R. Royer, Oscar 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. I35 

H. Wiseheart, of North Salem ; H. C. Summers, W. H. White, of Amo ; 
Frederick N. Wright, of Hazelwood. 

FIRST PHYSICIANS. 

The first doctor in the town of Danville was Doctor Garrett. No data 
is available as to his practice here. Doctor Collins was an early comer to 
Eel River township. James H. Heady was one of the first in North Salem. 
R. C. Moore and L. H. Kennedy were the first practitioners in Belleville. 
In Stilesville there was Jonathan N. Green; in Clayton, Doctor Lyon and 
C. T. Lawrence ; in New Winchester, William Robbins and T. T. Brazier. 
T. P. Burk was an early doctor in Lizton. In Pittsboro and Middle town- 
ship the first physicians were Doctors Witty, Hoadley and Cloud. They were 
practitioners of the allopathic school. 



CHAPTER XX. 



CHURCH HISTORY. 



METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCHES. 

The first Methodist Episcopal class that was organized in Hendricks 
county was at the home of Robert Wilson, near the present Shiloh church, in 
the winter of 1828 and 1829. Soon afterwards classes were established at 
North Salem, Danville, Stilesville, Wesley Chapel and near Lizton. At the 
first quarterly meeting for the White Lick circuit, held at Robert Wilson's 
on October 25, 1828, there were present John Strange, Joseph Tarkington, 
Peter Monicle, Robert Wilson and Wesley Monicle; Aaron Homan. Gideon 
Wilson and Elisha Kise were appointed a committee to make an estimate 
of the amount necessary to build a meeting house near Robert Wilson's. 
Early the next season plans were made and the house constructed, and it was 
the first Methodist meeting house in the county. There was not much money 
available at that time and the sums given by the different classes woulcT 
seem pitifully small toda}^ but they were given with a generous spirit and un- 
doubtedly went much farther than they would now. 

At the cjuarterly conference held in Danville, August 4. 1838, it was 
ordered that P. S. Dickens, Daniel McCreary. Hezekiah Smith, Asa Beck 
and Elijah M. Crawford be appointed a committee to divide the Danville 
circuit into two separate circuits ; also at the same time it was ordered that 
S. B. Caywood, R. C. Russell and H. Rammel be appointed a committee to 
form an estimate of the probable cost of building a church in Danville. At 
a subsequent conference William Plenton, R. C. Russell, William C. Cline, 
James Logan and Samuel Brenton were elected trustees for the Danville 
church, which was erected in 1840 on the same lot upon which is located the 
present church. This church was occupied for public worship until 1865, 
when it was converted into a parsonage and the chapel of the Danville Acad- 
emy was fitted up and used for church purpo-es. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. I37 



THE DANVILLE ACADEMY. 



Before this time the church society in the town of Danville had taken 
the lead in educational matters by organizing and building up the Danville 
Academy, which was operated under the management of the quarterly con- 
ference. This enterprise commenced in 1858 and lasted until 1868. Among 
the prominent educators who, at different times, had charge of this school 
were Professors Tarr, Lummis, O. H. Smith, J. L. Rippetoe and James 
Scull. About eighteen thousand dollars were spent by the Methodists of 
Danville in this undertaking. In the spring of 1878, twenty years after 
the beginning, the society transferred, for a small sum, all of the school 
property to the Central Normal College. 

In that year the present INIethodist church was begun in Danville and 
finished at a cost of ten thousand dollars. It was dedicated on the 26th of 
January, 1879. Milton Henton, Moses Keeney, Bloomfield White, B. N. 
Beale and X. T. Hadley were trustees during the erection of the present 
church building. 

Danville was organized into a station in 1853. Before that among the 
preachers who had preached in the circuit w^ere J. Tarkington, Joseph White. 
Asa Beck, Israel Lewis, D. F. Streight, Hezekiah Smith, Frank Richmond. 
J. B. Demotte. After that came C. S. Burgner, N. L. Brakeman, Samuel 
Godfrey, Allen Gurney, George Warner, Luther Taylor, D. F. Barnes, T. C. 
Workman, F. Taylor, Nelson Green, Thomas S. Webb, Francis M. Pavey, 
Samuel P. Colvin, George W. Bower, James H. Claypool, Joseph C. Reed, 
R. D. Utter, J. H. Hull. 

The first Sunday school organized by the Methodists in Danville was 
opened in the old brick school house located on lot i, block 23, with Henry 
Rammel as leader. After this organization had continued for one year it 
disbanded and then there was a union Sundav school, with John Baker as 
superintendent. This school met in the old Presbyterian church on lot i, 
block 15. This continued for one year, when the Methodists withdrew and. 
as a society, were interested in no school until 1840. At this date they 
organized again into a Sunday school with John Green as superintendent. 
The school lived two years. At a political meeting in the old court house on 
Saturday night, in the latter part of October, 1844, there happened to be in 
attendance Hezekiah S. McCormick, Milton Henton and William V. Bishop. 
In a conversation held at that time they resolved that a Methodist Sunday 
school should be started the next day week. Notice was accordinglv given 



138 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

and on the set date the school started with a membership of fifty. The 
Sunday school is still in existence and has an excellent membership. 

The Methodist Episcopal church, at Stilesville, has been organized about 
seventy-five years. Services were held for many years in the old school house 
and in 1850 the society built a new church which cost them about sixteen 
hundred dollars. Among the early members were Isaac Smart, William 
Cline, John Clark, John Richardson, James Borders, Joseph Bishop, Edward 
Jackson, Elijah McAnich and their wives. Some of the early ministers were 
James Williams, Joseph Woods, J. F. Woodruff, Silas Gaskin, Bridges, 
Miles, Woods, W. W. Pewett. William Ginnis, Asa Beck and J. V. R. Mil- 
ler. The present church at Stilesville is in charge of Rev. Ramsay. A brick 
church was built in the nineties, costing three thousand dollars. There is 
a good membership of over a hundred. 

The Methodist Episcopal church at Cartersburg was formed in the win- 
ter of 1856-7 by Rev. Jesse Woodward, with John Biddle, William Little, 
Richard Poe and their wives, Mrs. Brady and others as the first members. 
Their first house of worship was built in 1857 at a cost of seven hundred and 
fifty dollars. It was of frame and located in the northwest part of the vil- 
lage. A brick church was erected in 1897. R^v. Eckhart is the present pas- 
tor, having charge of a congregation of one hundred people. 

The Methodist Episcopal church at Coatesville was organized in the 
thirties. Their first house of worship was destroyed by fire about i860 and a 
new one was built the same year at a cost of two thousand dollars. Revs. 
J. B. Combs, Jesse Hill, D. W. Risher, Nelson Green, John McDaniel, W. 
D. Davidson, B. H., Bradbury, E. Mason were a few of the earlier pas- 
tors. Rev. Smock is in charge at present. The church has a substantial 
house of worship and the membership is about eighty-five. 

The Methodist Episcopal church at Plainfield has been an organization 
nearly seventy years. i\mong the early members of this church were O. H. 
Dennis, Riley Taylor and wife, Alexander Worth (founder of the society) 
and wife, William Owens, Sebastian Hiss, Fred Trucks and Mrs. Higgins. 
Revs. Dunlavy, Switzer, Green, Johnson, Beard and Siddell were among the 
early pastors of the Plainfield church. Rev. Williams is the present pastor. 
There are about one hundred and fifty members. 

The Methodist Episcopal church at Brownsljurg was the second to be 
organized in the town. Some of the early pastors were I. P. Patch. T. M. 
Webb and John B. Demott. Rev. Weidman is the pastor in charge at this 
date, and has succeeded in maintaining the high standard of the church. 
There is a good membership and a new brick house of worship. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 1 39 

The Methodist Episcopal church at Amo was organized in the year 
1867. The first church house was completed in that same year at a cost 
of two thousand dollars. Among the first members were William H. Tush, 
Winfield Hines, John McAninch, Wesley Johnson, M. W. Cosner, John 
M. Champion, Herbert Fencer, John Caspar, S. F. Tincher, James E. Ral- 
ston, with their wives, Mrs. Lucinda Stanley and Mrs. Nancy Newman. 
The pastors have been F. M. Pavy, B. H. Bradbury, Thomas Bartlett, J. 
F. McDaniel, W. C. Davidson, Nelson Green, B. W. Risher, Nelson Green, 
Jesse Hill, J. B. Combs, Elihu Mason, Rev. Smock is the present pastor of 
the Amo church. The church has a good membership and is prosperous. 

The first house of worship in Pittsboro was erected in 1836 by the Meth- 
odist Episcopal society. Simon T Hadley offered to donate lot 2, block 2, to 
any congregation which would build a church. Arch and Jolm Alexander, 
William Tincher, Nathaniel Helton and their families were the charter mem- 
bers. The elder Alexander sawed lumber in his water mill on his farm be- 
low town, and a house was built a short distance west of the present build- 
ing. Rev. Enoch Wood was the first minister. Park Poynter and Nathaniel 
Gossett were its local preachers for years. 

The Methodist Episcopal church at the town of North Salem was or- 
ganized over eighty years age. Reuben Claypool was a Methodist minister 
and preached to his neighbors in their private cabins from the earliest date, 
and about 1833 a class was formed. Among the prominent early members 
were John S. and Charity Woodward, John Claypool, wife and children, 
Chester and Martha Page, Mrs. Jerusha Covey, and William and Eleanor 
Jones and family. A church was built by the society before the war, costing 
twelve hundred dollars. J. L. Smith. T. F. Drake, W. Fletcher Clark, David 
Hadley and D. P. McLain were among the early ministers. The church is 
now in good condition, with a membership of one hundred and fifty. 

Before any church organization existed, in Washington township, the 
Methodists held religious services regularly at the home of John and Dorcas 
Gossett. Then a class of ten or twelve charter members was organized, a 
yearly camp meeting was established on the land of Seth Hurin, one-fourth 
mile west of present Avon. In 1842 a frame church was erected just south 
of the camp ground. The labor on this building was almost entirely per- 
formed by the membership. Rev. Joseph Marsee was pastor as well as one 
of the chief carpenters, and each day at the noon hour he preached a short 
sermon to the men and to their wives who came bringing them dinner. In 
1875 ^ second church was built on this same lot and was dedicated October 



I 



140 HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 

loth. Tlua l)uilding, thirty-two by forty-six feet in size, cost complete six- 
teen hundred dollars. T. C. Webster was pastor during the Imilding. The 
building was still in good condition when the grade for the traction line was 
made in the winter of 1903, and it was found that the church was so cut 
off from the road by the grade that the building must be moved or a new 
(^ne erected. The latter course was chosen. The entire membership, and 
members of other churches, as well as those with no church relation, con- 
tributed generously. The building was completed at a total cost of five thou- 
sand dollars, and, on October 2, 1904, was dedicated, without a cent of debt 
and without a collection. Rev. PI. C. Riley was pastor during the time of 
building. The size of the building is forty-two feet in the extreme, with a 
square tower, with entrance through its vestibule to both the main and Sun- 
day school rooms. The building is of Poston paving brick, rock faced, and 
with stone trimming, and is a neat and substantial structure. In addition to 
this church there are in the tow^iship two other Methodist churches, Shiloh, 
three miles east, and Bartlett's, three miles west. 

The Methodist Episcopal society dates from 1833 in Union township. 
At this date a class was formed at the house of William Montgomery, who 
was leader. Among the early members were Mr. Plummer, Sally Bargan, 
Claiborne Davis and John Pritchett. The church building was located one 
half mile south of Lizton. 

The first church organized in Washington tow^nship was at the house of 
Robert Wilson in 1823. This is now the Shiloh church. It was the first 
Methodist Episcopal church organization in the county and the fourth one 
of any denomination. There were afterwards three other churches in the 
township of the Methodist Episcopal faith, namely : Shiloh, Wesley and 
Bartlett's Chapel. Regular Baptist churches were located at Abner's creek 
and Salem. 

The African Methodist Episcopal church at Plainfield was organized 
about forty-five years ago. It met for a long time at the Morgan school 
house, two and a half miles from Plainfield, and in 1879 commenced holding 
its services in the village. The church erected in that year cost about six 
hundred dollars. 

CHRISTIAN CHURCHES. 

The Disciples, or Christian, church was organized in the fall of 1844, 
at Danville, by Love H. Jameson, of Indianapolis. The charter members 
were Allen Hess and wife, Asa S. White and wife, lames Odell and wife. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. I4I 

Wesley B. Sears and wife. Wesley Bell and wife, Margaret McPhetridge, 
Celia Cake and Samuel A. Verbrike and wife, all of whom are now dead. 
The first officers were Allen Hess and Asa S. White, elders ; W^esley Bell and 
James Odell, deacons. The organization was effected at the home of Asa 
S. White and for years afterwards the society met to worship in private 
homes and in the old court house. In the year of 1852 the congregation was 
sufficiently large to build a frame church, in which it worshipped for more than 
twenty years. The church had no resident ministry for many years, but 
was periodically visited b}- such men as L. H. Jameson, Thomas Lockhart, 
X. \\'aters. William Jarrett, John OTvane, O. P. Badger. A. I. Hobbs and 
others. After the Civil War William R. Jewell settled with them as the 
regular and only pastor. He was followed by U. C. Brewer, W. H. Blanks, 
W. S. Tingley, George G. Peale, Ira J. Chase, A. J. Frank, S. O. Conner, A. 
L. Orcut, A. L. Conner, U. G. Martin, E. E. Daugherty, E. E. Moorman, 
Charles Goodnight, A. Leech and the present pastor, W. E. Anderson. 

A handsome brick house of worship was erected in 1874 at a cost of six- 
teen thousand dollars. It has, however, recently been demolished and a more 
pretentious building is now in process of construction on the same spot on 
greatly enlarged grounds at a cost of fifty thousand dollars. The new 
structure was induced by the munificent gift of thirt}'-five thousand dollar.-, 
by Edgar E. Shirley, as a memorial to his father and mother. The new 
building will be institutional in character. It will embrace not only an audi- 
torium for worship, but an assembly room for the Sunday school, divers 
class rooms, a kitchen, a bancpieting hall and a gymnasium. The latter will be 
equipped with appliances for all modern physical exercises, such as swings, 
bars, in-door ball games, etc. It w^ill be supplied with about one hundred 
lockers, lavatories, etc., and will be set apart on certain evenings of the week 
for the use of the girls and certain evenings for the boys of the town, with- 
out reference to church affiliations. A governor or governess to attend 
each open evening. 

The church membership, at the time of organization in 1840, numbered 
thirty. In 1884 it had increased to two hundred and sixty and now has an 
enrollment of four hundred and four. 

The Sunday school was organized in 1852, Moses Cavitt being the 
first superintendent. The present average attendance is two hundred and 
twenty and James P. Snodgrass is the superintendent. The church has also 
been efficient in religious and social activities usual to church work. 

The Christian church, at Clayton, was organized December 7, 1863, by 
Rev. Thomas Lockhart and O. P. Badger. Samuel B. Hall and lohn R. Bal- 



142 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

lard were chosen as the first elders and George Acton and James Ferguson, 
deacons. The charter members were sixty-three in number. The church 
built in 1865 cost over twenty-six hundred dollars. Among the early pastors 
were Thomas Lockhart, O. P. Badger, Jameson, Sherman, Canfield, Miller, 
[ewell, Frank and Brewer. Rev. Scofield is the present pastor and the mem- 
bership is one hundred and twenty-five. 

The Christian church at Stilesville was organized and their first house 
of worship erected in 1842. This building was of frame and cost one 
thousand dollars. Among the first members were Daniel Osborne, John 
\'V. Bryant, John R. Robards, George W. Snoddy, James Snoddy and their 
families. After using their first church over thirty years, a brick edifice was 
erected, costing twenty-five hundred dollars. George VV. Snoddy was a 
preacher in this church over forty years, dying in April, 1882. A. J. Frank, 
of Greencastle, took charge after his death, then A. M. Connor, Gilchrist. 
Rev. Beard is the present pastor. The membership numbers seventy-five. 

The Christian church at Plainfield was organized in March. 1830, with 
the following as the first members : David Cox and wife, John Hadley, 
Jonathan Hadley, David Carter, Ezekiel Hornaday, Hiram Hornaday, Hir- 
am Green, Abijah Cox, with their wives, and Alexander Shover, seven- 
teen in all. They soon built a hewed-log church and in that primitive struc- 
ture, half a mile north of the present site of Plainfield, they worshipped 
for five or six years. They then erected a frame church in the village, using 
the same for twenty years, when it was succeeded by a brick structure, built 
on the site of the frame, at a cost of three thousand dollars. Among the 
first ministers were Revs. Michael and Job Combs, Lewis Comer, John Se- 
crest, Oatman, and John O'Kane. Rev. Shields is now in charge. There 
are two hundred members enrolled. 

The Christian church at Pittsboro was organized February 25, 1854. 
A church was built in the same year at a cost of two thousand dollars. It 
was later used as a residence. This first church was located on ground now 
owned by the Pierson sisters. It was erected by James Cundifif, an uncle of 
Mrs. E. W. Sawyer. This membership was organized by the venerable 
Thomas Lockhart. He ministered to the spiritual needs of this congregation 
for years and was succeeded by Elders Luke Warren and James Canfield. Its 
charter members were from the families of the Wells, Parkers and Hills, 
who were before that members at Brownsburg. This house served for the 
triple purpose of sanctuary, school and dwelling until 1889, when it was 
purchased and razed by Douglas Baker and the site occupied with a dwelling. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 143 

fThe second church was built in 1873. It has since been remodeled and made 
more modern. Frank Sumner is the present pastor. The membership is one 
hundred and ninety. 
The Christian church at North Salem was organized in 1837. with 
Charles Fleece and Thompson Farmer as elders. O. P. Badger, D. Collins, 
W. B. F. Treat, A. J. Frank, William Holt and A. Plunkett were among 
the early pastors. In recent years this church divided over a controversy in 
regard to an organ and now there are two Christian churches in Salem. 
Rev. H. E. Kelsev is in charge of the larger and the smaller obtains supply. 
The Christian church, in Brownsburg, is the oldest in that town and 
the second to be organized in the township of Lincoln. It was organized in 
1835 by Thomas Lockhart, with seventeen members. John L. Parker and V. 
Cress were the elders. The society constructed a brick church in 1859, at a 
cost of fifteen hundred dollars. Rev. William L. Newlin is the pastor now. 
The church has a strong membership. 

In Union township the first preaching was done by Gilbert Harney, of 
the Christian denomination. In 1837 Gilbert Flarney organized at the house 
of Archibald Alexander, a church, with Mr. Alexander, Joseph P. Lewis, 
Samuel C. Carrington and their wives, with a few others, as members. A 
church was built about 1875 and has been prosperous since. 

In Middle township the Christian church was the first to be organized. 
The Baptist was second and then the Cumberland Presbyterian. 

PRESBYTERIAN SOCIETIES. 

The Presbyterian church at Danville was organized in 1832. Among 
the leading early members were Daniel McAuley and wife, Jacob K. Moore 
and wife, Alexander Morris and family, Henry G. Todd, Samuel King and 
Eliza McPheeters. Among the pastors who have served this congregation 
have been Revs. Samuel G. Lowry, Hill, Moody, Chase, Theophilus Lowry, 
Henry Hammer, Samuel Wishard, Henry L. Dickerson, G. D. Parker, N. S. 
Dickey. 

The first house of worship was erected on the corner lot north of the 
present standpipe. Tt was frame, substantially built, the sleepers of whole 
logs, slightly flattened on one side, on which rested the floor. This building 
was used for public worship on the Sabbath and a subscription school was 
taught by the old-time pedagogues during the week. Some of the charter 
members of the congregation walked to church from what is now a part of 
the "Abe Eastes farm," a distance of nearlv four miles, and had to cross the 



144 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

creek northeast of town on a foot log. Henry Ward Beecher attended and 
preached here during meetings of the presbytery. It is reported that a Sab- 
bath school was conducted at which "Uncle George Rich" led the singing with 
a violin. 

At the building of the next church, now the Knights of Pythias hall, 
about 1850, the old building was purchased by George Wayland, who i)ut in 
a ceiling and converted it into a carpenter sho]) and later into a residence, 
and as such it served until leveled in 1891, when the heavy timbers made fuel 
for a family for more than two years. The new church was not fully com- 
pleted and dedicated until December 29, 1858, when Amos Jones, one of the 
early ministers, came and assisted in the dedication. Rev. H. L. Dickerson 
came in the spring of 1858. Ministers who had previously served the church 
were Revs. Cole, Post and Lee. Rev. Dickerson came direct from Lane 
Seminary, with his bride, who had been a teacher in a female seminary- on 
Walnut Hills, and they at once began to plan better things for this church. 
He resigned after twenty years of faithful service. During the pastorate of 
Rev. Dickerson he had organized White Lick church. During his absence 
the pulpit was supplied by Dr. Fisk, of Greencastle, and Rev. R. B. Herron 
On June i, 1877, Rev. Dickerson returned and again took up the work here 
and at White Lick, but deaths and removals had so depleted the membership 
that it was found impossible to sustain a regular pastor, so Rev. Dickerson 
removed to Lidianapolis, from which point he supplied vacant churches in 
every direction from that city. 

On July 30, 1882, the Danville congregation decided to organize as a 
Cumberland Presbyterian church, with a large majority of the working 
members as charter members of the new organization. Among them were 
J. O. Wishard and wife, Isaac Piersol and wife, W. T. Lawson and wife. 
James Reed and wife, Asa Martin and wife, Charles R. Rose, Emma Piersol 
Barnett, Mary E. W^arner, Elizabeth Scearce, Mary Cooper, J. B. Harlan. 
Ruth Cash and Ella Nave, together with Charles Hadley and wife, Stanley 
Hall and wife, Asa Black and wife, and Lawrence V'annice, who had re- 
moved to this vicinity from the New Winchester and Groveland Cumberland 
congregations. This new organization proceeded to erect a new^ building, in 
which they now worship. Work on the church was begun in the spring of 
1884 and completed in November of the same year and dedicated November 
30th. It cost sixty-two hundred dollars. 

In April, 1883, the Indianapolis presbytery, on petition of the members 
of the old church who did not see fit to go into the Cumberland organization, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. I45 

reorganized the church, with Henry G. Todd, Robert R. Downard and Isaac 
R. Lawson as elders, and Marshall Todd and Frank J. Christie, deacons. 
Dr. H. G. Todd was afterward elected clerk of the session. Rev. G. D. 
Parker was secured as a supply until February, 1885, when Rev. N. S. 
Dickey came and labored faithfully, but the field was small and the church 
grew weaker until, in April, 1890. by resolution of presbytery, the church 
was dissolved at the request of the home mission committee. 

On May 25, 1906, the reunion of the Cumberland Presbyterian and the 
Presbyterian churches of the United States was consummated at Decatur, 
Illinois, and is now known as the Presbyterian church of the United States 
of America. The Danville church, by a vote, concurred in this action of the 
general assembly. 

This church has had as pastors and supplies Revs. Witherspoon, What- 
ley, Penick, Flalsell, Hudgins, Rogers, McKnight, Prather, Yokely, Mahr, 
Danley, Giuchard, Christensen and W. H. Gray. 

In the early thirties the Cumberland Presbyterians of Liberty township 
were perfected into an organization by Rev. Alexander C. Downey at Belle- 
ville. They, in common with other religious organizations in our early days, 
had no stated house of worship, but met from house to house or held services 
in some school house, mostly, however, in what was known as the Mitchell 
school house, situated on the west side of the road leading south from Clay- 
ton and at the short bend just south of the national road. 

The minutes of the sessions having become lost, Wabash presbytery au- 
thorized the elders to procure a new book and enter therein the names of 
such members as were known to be in good standing. This was accomplished 
in January, 1841, when thirty-eight names were enrolled. Of these, Samuel 
Little, of Plainfield, now nearing the ninety-second anniversary of his birth, 
was a charter member and his niece, Rebecca Harden, of Indianapolis, some 
eighty years of age, are the only ones known to be among the living. 

In 1 85 1, upon a lot donated by Richard Worrell, and a short distance 
south of the present location, was erected a house for worship. The con- 
tractor was Ferdinand Hopwood, who was assisted by D. N. Hopwood, 
Frank W. Beckwith, William A. Ragan and Moses Kebner. 

Mr. and Mrs. W. A. Ragan were the first to be received into member- 
ship in the Clayton church. This was on March zy, 1853. 

The first Christmas tree in Clayton was held in this church on Christ- 
mas eve, 1866. In 1869 the first church organ was purchased by Taylor 
Wills, who acted as organist for eight years. 
(10) 



146 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

In 1872, not liking the location, a lot was bought of Joseph L. Rhoades 
and Messrs. Dr. C. T. Lawrence, Henry Lincoln and William A. Ragan were 
appointed a committee to remo\-e the church and refit it for use. This build- 
ing having been occupied something over half a century as place for wor- 
ship and also showing the marks of time, in May, 1901. it was decided that a 
more suitable location and a building adequate for the needs oi the times 
were absolutely necessary. The church appointed Messrs. Columbus F. Ed- 
mondson. Thomas Edmondson and Howard Mitchell, who performed their 
duties by selecting a site more centrally located and erecting thereon a build- 
ing forty-nine by fifty-eight from out to out, having an auditorium and two 
Sunday school rooms, all of which may be easily thrown together as occa- 
sion demands. The seating capacity is about four hundred and may 'be 
increased to five hundred by crowding. The building is heated by a hot air 
furnace, lighted by a gasoline plant and seated with chairs. A new three- 
hundred-dollar vocalion organ was secured. The cost of the location, build- 
ing and furnishings footed up about five thousand dollars. Samuel Little, 
before mentioned, is supposed to be the oldest living elder, having been or- 
dained in 1832. 

W. A. Ragan was Sunday school superintendent for over thirty years. 
For twenty years John Cornett led in the singing and Amos S. Wills was 
secretary of the Sunday school. 

Much of the credit for the structure was due to the untiring zeal of the 
pastor, Rev. Elmer J. Bouher. 

The following pastors have been in charge here at various times : Alex- 
ander Downey, Samuel C. Mitchell, James Ritchey, Joseph Flannah, W. T. 
Ferguson, D. D., Elam McCord, H. D. Onyett, D. D., A. Randolph, W. D. 
Hawkins, B. F. Ivy, L, P. Witherspoon, A. H. Whatley, Thomas Penick, 
J. P. Halsell, Charles Wilson, J. L. Hudgins, J. L. McKnight, Josephus 
Latham, A. T. Carr, Elmer J. Bouher, and Rev. Frank, the present in- 
cumbent. 

The Presbyterian church at Brownsburg was organized by George Long 
in 1865. He raised the sum of twenty-three hundred dollars to be used for 
the construction of a church building. Revs. Beach, McKee, Mayo and H. L. 
Dickerson were a few of the first to occupy the pulpit. Rev. Beeson is the 
present pastor. The church has a membership of one hundred and is pros- 
perous. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. I47 

BAPTIST CHURCHES. 

The Regular Baptist church at Danville was organized in the year 1823. 
having the distinction of being the first religious organization in the county 
and also of having been organized before the county. Some of the early 
members were William Faught and wife, Thomas Flathers and wife, Joel 
Jelf and L. T. Pounds. Elder J. \V. Thomas preached for some time prior 
to the year 1836. Elders William Hardin and Thomas Hooten each served 
for a number of years. The latter's back was ])roken 1)}' a falling shed and 
he died a year after the accident. Elder Erasmus D. Thomas commenced 
his labors here before the war. 

The church has had three houses of worship. The first, a log structure, 
was used until 1852, when a new frame building was constructed. This 
house was used until 1903, when the present building was built. The regu- 
lar services of the church are held monthly on the second Saturday and Sun- 
dav following in each month. Elder E. W. Thomas, the son of Erasmus 
D. Thomas, has served the church continuously. 

The !»kIissionary Baptist church was organized November 9, 1850. by 
members from the Belleville church. Prominent in this movement were 
Moses Cavett and wife, Rufus Tharpe, Richard Christie and David Downs. 
A house of worship was built, which cost about twelve hundred dollars. The 
money for this building was raised chiefly through the efforts of the wife 
of the first pastor. This church society is now discontinued in the town of 
Danville. 

The Baptist church at Cartersburg was constituted March 21. 1864, with 
Rev. R. M. Parks as pastor and the following first members. H. D. Mc- 
Cormick and wife, R. T. McCormick and wife, A. S. McCormick and wife, 
Matilda Christine, William. Nancy, Sudy, Cynthia, and Moses Tomlinson, 
James and Sarah Hayden. John A. and Sarah Veatch, Isabel Silch, Joseph 
K. and Elizabeth Little, Hazzard and Margaret J. Woodhurst, Anna Mar- 
tin, Sarah A. Snodgrass, Oliver P. Garr, Susan Dilley. Charles Maddox. 
Greeiiberry Baker. James Roach, George Hufford, Hannah Owens. R. T. 
McCormick was chosen tbt first clerk. The society erected a frame church 
in 1 868 at a cost ( f seven hundred dollars. R. M. Parks, B. A. :\Ielson, W. 
Trent, J. W. Sherrill. F. M. Buchan and J. \\'. Crews were among the first 
pastors. Rev. Buchanan is now in charge. 

The White Lick Baptist church was the first of any denomination or- 
ganized in Hendricks county. It was formed March 27, 1824. by Eldei^ 



148 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

William Pope, with the following members : Thomas Hinton and wife, 
James Thompson and wife and Chris. Pope. This little band met at the 
house of Elder Pope for several years and in 1831 built a church at Belle- 
ville, a frame building. After a number of years the church was divided, a 
portion going to Clayton and organizing the Missionary Baptist church. 
Many of the first members having died, the Belleville church went down, 
and finally became defunct and the church building torn down. This church 
\vas moved to Pittsboro in 1887. Elder E. A. Williams has been preacher 
for several years. The membership is about fifty. 

The Baptist church at North Salem was organized before the Civil 
War and a building erected during the war at a cost of one thousand dollars. 
Among the first members were Preston Pennington, Elizabeth Ballard, Su- 
san, Levi, Mary and Eliza Pennington, Thomas, Susan and George Barber, 
John N. and Mary V. Clemens and Eaton Bales. Rev. Fuson is the present 
pastor. 

The Baptist church at Amo was organized near the time of the opening 
of the Civil War in 1861. A year or two after the organization a frame 
church was constructed, costing two thousand dollars. Among the early 
members were Elijah Wheeler, Harding Tincher, Milton Bland, Hiram 
Bland, Samuel Hubbard, and their wives. The first regular pastor was 
Rev. Edwards. Following him came Rev. Wilson G. Trent, Moore, Sher- 
rill, L. A. Clevenger, R. N. Harvey. Rev. Tedford now fills the pulpit. 

The Missionary Baptist church at Stilesville was organized about eighty 
years ago. The frame church first used was constructed in 1840. Among 
the early members of the society were David Boswell, Abraham Bland, James 
Walls, Moses Crawford, Josiah Garrin, their wives, and Mary Reese. A 
brick church was completed in 1882, at a cost of three thousand dollars. 
Among the early pastors were Revs. John Jones, Benjamin Arnold, John 
Mugg, Jacob and John Rynearson. Rev. J. E. Sherrill is the latest pastor. 

The Missionary Baptist church at Clayton was founded March 11, 1854, 
by John Vawter, Jacob Rynearson, M. Elliott, Davis Boswell and Moses 
Crawford, who held letters of dismissal from the Belleville church, and a 
number of others, fifty-eight in all. The first trustees elected were Richard 
Worrell, Francis Edmondson and John Rynearson. Rev. Hackleman is the 
pastor in 19 14. 

The Missionary Baptist church at Coatesville organized their church in 
1871, and built a frame church in 1873 at a cost of twelve hundred dollars. 
Revs. Sherrill, Jesse Buchanan, John F. Crews, G. W. Terry. Rev. J. E. 



I 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 149 

Sherrill also preaches at this church. Rev. Richard Oliphant is in charge of 
the Primitive Baptist church at Coatesville. 

The Missionary Baptists at Plainfield have had a regular organization for 
about sixty years. Among the first members were Adam Jones and wife, Orrin 
Bonner and wife, Samuel McCormick and wife, William Douglass and wife 
and children. After a time the society purchased the church which had 
been occupied by the Friends and used the same for a number of years. 
In August, 1884, they dedicated a fine brick church, which cost about three 
thousand dollars. Rev. Bell is the pastor today. 

The Regular Baptist church was the first to be organized in Middle 
township. The Spicklemires, Keeneys and Newman families were among 
the charter members. Their church building was erected on grounds now 
comprising the old White Lick cemetery east of Pittsboro. about the year 
1837. The earliest preachers were Harrison Darnell, Thomas Hooten. Will- 
iam Hardie and Peter Keeney. Its membership increased with succeeding 
years until it was one of the strongest associations in the county. 

The first church organization in Eel River township was that of the 
Regular Baptists, which was organized at Round Town by the Penningtons 
and others, at an unknown date. 

William Pope, a Baptist minister, did the first preaching and organized 
the first Baptist church in Hendricks county, in his own house, in the autumn 
of 1823. 

The Center Valley Baptists have a church building, dedicated in Octo- 
ber, 1906. 

FRIENDS. 

The Western yearly meeting of Friends was organized in September, 
1858, the first members being Eleazer Bales, Charles Moore, Matthew Stan- 
ley and Robert W. Hodson, with their families. At the time of the or- 
ganization the large new building could not accommodate the crowd. Bar- 
nabas C. Hobbs, of Bloomingdale, Indiana, was the first presiding clerk and 
Shiles Moore, of Plainfield, the first treasurer. The women members or- 
ganized a separate meeting, with Drusilla Wilson, of Indianapolis, the first 
clerk. Separate sessions of the men and women were continued until 1893, 
since which time the whole body has met together. The yearly meeting has 
enjoyed nearly a half century of prosperity. She experienced one schism in 
1877, but fortunately this was scarcely felt in any of its limits except Plain- 
field. 



150 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

On ^larch 28. 191 3. the splendid chnrch l)uilding of the l<"riends yearly 
meeting Ijurned. Experts came to contract for the building of a new struc- 
ture and upon examining the walls of the old church, found that they were 
eighteen inches thick and sunk ten feet to hard-pan. This wall could not be 
duplicated Avithout great cost, so the new structure was built upon the foun- 
dations of the old. It -was opened on March 8, 1914, having cost nearly 
seventeen thousand dollars. One-third of the building is for the local society 
and the rest for the yearly meeting. The local society has a membership of 
five liundred. E. J. Carter is pastor. The Western yearly meeting is com- 
l)osed of one hundred and ten churches and the meeting is held on the Tues- 
day before the third Sunday in September. 

The Friends church at the town of Amo was organized about the year 
of 1840. A log church was constructed as the first house of worship, but 
this was quickly succeeded by a frame structure, which was used for forty 
years and then gave way to the new structure, which was completed in the 
fall of 1883, at a cost of fifteen hundred dollars. Among the early members 
of this society were Philip Johnson, John Cosner, Annuel Edwards and 
Asael Hunt. 

The Friends church in Danville was organized in the year 1874 with 
about forty charter members, among them Henry and B. F. Howell, Wyatt 
Osborn. William F. Hamrick, William Cox, John Warnock, John McPheters 
and their wives, Mrs. J. W. Estep and E. L. Smith. Within a year steps 
were taken toward building a church, which was completed in 1876 at a 
cost of four thousand dollars, located on the corner of Cross and South 
streets. There were but few resident members of the church when the first 
efl:"ort was made to enter this field. John K. Howell. Anna Mills and Will- 
iam S. Wooton were the first ministers in the early organization of this 
church. John Henry Douglas dedicated the house of worship ; David and 
Sarah Hadley were the first pastors, being in charge at the time the church 
building was erected. The parsonage was built in 1885. Since the organiza- 
tion of the church evangelistic services of more than passing interest have 
been held by John Henry Douglas, Nathan and Esther Frame, George Willis 
and Mary Moon. The following persons have been pastors of the church : 
William S. Wooton. Caleb Johnson. Mahlon Perry, Abbie Trueblood, Orvil 
Jones, Howard Brown, Thomas Brown. Robert Pretlow. Sarah M. Hadley, 
Hannah Pratt Jessup. Zeno Doane. Fred Smith. David Hadley. Willis Bond. 
The church has never failed to sustain a regular means of grace, and has 
always maintained a good SundaA- school. The present membership is con- 
siderablv over one hundred. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY^ INDIANA. I5I 

Other churches of this denomination in Hendricks county are at Bridge- 
port, Fairfield, Union Hill, three miles south of Plainfield, and Hadley. 

CATHOLIC CHURCH. 

St. Malachy's Catholic church at Brownsburg is first written upon the 
records under the date of August 26, 1867, and this was made by Rev. D. J. 
McMullen, through w^hose efforts the church building was constructed. Very 
Rev. Aug. Bessonies was there February 20, 1869, and the first resident 
priest began his work there on October 2d of that same year. He was suc- 
ceeded after a time by Rev. Dennis O'Donavan. The latter served some 
years at this point and then exchanged with Rev. Thomas Logan, of Green- 
castle, where he remained a year or two. Returning in 1877, he found the 
parish in debt for certain improvements made by Father Logan and O'Dona- 
van denied the validity of the debt. Bishop Chatard took the opposite view 
and to secure the creditors gave a mortgage on the church property. Fa- 
ther O'Donovan contested the right of the Bishop to do this and the court 
decided for the latter. The Bishop then asked and obtained from the su- 
preme court a writ of ejectment against the priest, who also lost a subse- 
(pient suit for fifty thousand dollars damages for loss of employment, etc. 
During these troubles mass was regularly held at private houses or in a 
rented hall by Revs. Patrick Shepherd, Casper Seller, Charles Curran and 
E. J. Spelman. The first church was built in 1900, at a cost of twenty-five 
hundred dollars. The fine new structure recently completed has cost thirteen 
thousand dollars. Father John A. Walsh is the pastor and the congregation 
numbers eighty families. 

OTHER CHURCHES. 

The first religious meetings in Franklin township were held by the New 
Lights and John Smart and Thomas Woods did the preaching. This de- 
nomination organized a church at Orsburn's horse mill, which was the most 
noted place in the township until 1835. At this mill the Christian church 
was organized by Thomas Lockhart in 1832. 

A Lutheran church at Pecksburg was organized in the sixties. Will- 
iam Tinster preached for several years and in 1882 removed to ]\Iud Creek. 
This church is not active at present. 

A Holiness society exists at Cartersburg, with twelve members and in 
charge of Rev. George Stephenson. 



CHAPTER XXI. 



THE BENCH AND BAR. 



THE FIRST CIRCUIT COURT. 

At the house of William Ballard, on October 25, 1824, was held the 
first term of the circuit court. Then the county was in the fifth judicial 
circuit. The presiding judge was William W. Wick, commissioned by Jona- 
than Jennings on January 2, 1822. The associate judges at the same time 
were Nathan Kirk and James Downard, whose commissions were issued by 
Governor William Hendricks on July 26, 1824. Levi Jessup was clerk of 
the court. 

The men who acted as grand jurors this first session were Thomas R. 
Ballard, foreman, Daniel B. Tryer, Jesse Kellum, Pollard Baldwin, John 
Hawkins, David Demoss, Noah Bateman, John Fowler, John Ballard, James 
Thompson. Abijah Bray, Adin Ballard, Moses Alderson, Thomas Gilbert, 
David Ross and Samuel Jones. Jonathan Jessup was selected to attend to the 
grand jury. Hervey Gregg was the prosecuting attorney. 

In this session of court Calvin Fletcher, Gabriel Jones, Mr. Johnson and 
Daniel B. Wick were admitted to the bar. On the following day Craven P. 
Heister was also admitted to practice as an attorney. 

On this day the first case came up for trial. It was that of Joshua W. 
Redman vs. Benjamin Benson, for debt. This case was continued. James 
Brown vs. William H. Henton was then called and tried. This closed the 
October term, the next beginning in the following April. 

On April 25th the first case was tried before a jury, being the case of 
Brown vs. Hinton, for debt. The men who composed the jury were James 
McClure, Abijah Pinson, Ezekiel Hornaday, John Leaman, John W. Bryant, 
James Dunn, Samuel Woodward, Stephen Cook, Thomas Lockhart, David 
Demoss, David Ballard and Robert Cooper. The result of the trial was a 
judgment in favor of the plaintiff for thirty dollars. 

So ran the trials for a number of years after the establishment of the 
court. The first really important case was in Fel)ruary, 1827. against Samuel 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 1 53 

K. Barlow for killing George Matlock — charged with manslaughter. He 
was tried in August and sentenced to one year in the penitentiary, but he 
was granted a respite until the first day of the next term. Thomas Lockhart, 
Samuel Jessup, John Ballard and Abel Stanley giving a bond of three hun- 
dred dollars for his appearance. 

FIRST PROBATE COURT. 

The first probate court was held in Hendricks county in April, 1825, and 
Nathan Kirk and James Downard were associate judges. At this meeting 
the wills of Uriah Hults and William Ballard were admitted to probate. 

JUDGES. 

The list of judges who have served in the different courts of Hen- 
dricks county down to the present time will be found in the official sum- 
mary of county officers. 

THE BAR. 

• James M. Gregg was one of the first active attorneys in Hendricks 
county. He was born in 1806 in Patrick county, Virginia, and came to Hen- 
dricks in 1830. After being employed as dry goods clerk by James J. Given 
in Danville for a season, he became a deputy in the county clerk's office. In 
1834 he was made county surveyor, and was later elected to the office of 
county clerk. At the close of his term of office as clerk he began the prac- 
tice of law which he followed exclusively until his death with good success. 
He served one term in Congress, also one in the Legislature, and died in 
June, i860. 

Simon T. Hadley was another of the early attorneys in the county. He 
was born in North Carolina in 1801, taught school for a time, and in 1826 
came to Hendricks county and settled in Danville. He filled the offices of 
clerk and recorder in this county, serving as both for seven years and as 
recorder alone for twenty-two years. He was president of the First Na- 
tional Bank in Danville for many years. Mr. Hadley never studied law as 
a profession, his practice being confined almost exclusively to probate mat- 
ters, conveyancing and the writing of contracts. He was so reasonable in 
his charge, and possessed so fully the confidence of the people of the county 
that it was not at all infrequent for a citizen and his wife to drive over 
muddy roads in a two-horse wagon fifteen or twenty miles to get Uncle Si- 
mon to write a deed or other simple contract. 



154 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Christian C. Nave was also among the tirst and also among the most 
prominent of the Hendricks county lawyers. lie was born in eastern Tennes- 
see in 1803. He was educated for the legal profession and in the fall of 
1 83 1, at the age of twenty-eight years, left his native state for Indiana on 
horseback and after some investigation and inspection, arrived and settled in 
Danville, December 17, 1831. He had traveled all the way from his eastern 
Tennessee home to Danville through the woods on horseback, and when he 
arrived his total belongings was his mount, a few articles of wearing apparel 
in his saddle bags, a copy of Blackstone's Commentaries, a pistol, and five 
dollars in money. 

Before he had permanently located himself in the county seat of Dan- 
ville, he was called ui^on to defend, for a nominal fee, a citizen for the murder 
of his neighbor. It was Nave's opportunity and right well he recognized it. 
Being naturally of great energy and shrewdness, he at once set about the 
construction of a defense, in what was generally thought to be a desperate 
case, which resulted not only in his client's accpiittal, but also in extending 
Mr. Nave's reputation as an able advocate throughout central Indiana and 
which served him well and brought him many good fees throughout his 
sub>iequent action and eventful career. He was the subject of many amusing 
anecdotes, never accused of wrong or unprofessional conduct. He led the 
Third Indiana Regiment into Mexico as colonel, was liberal and public 
spirited and died in Danville in 1884. He was unfaltering in the study and 
practice of his profession up to the hour of his death, in his eighty-second 
year, and in his last sickness had his daughter sit by his bedside and read to 
him all the current opinions of the supreme court as they appeared. 

Leander M. Campbell, a Kentuckian, was admitted to the Hendricks 
county bar in 1854. He was an educated man, had been a previous school 
teacher. He had a remarkable memory and seemed always to have at hand, 
ready for immediate use. any legal principle or ruling that had ever before 
attracted his attention. His social qualities were of the very best and his 
acquaintance with the people of the county was so thorough that he used to 
say there was not a family living in the county for a period of live vears that 
he could not tell its blood and marriage relations with all other families in the 
county. 

In making up of juries and in the examination of witnesses this thorough 
acquaintance with the people was a great advantage he had over his opponents 
in a trial. 

He was a forceful and lucid speaker, carrying always the air of sincerity 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 1 55 

and always put forth his best endeavor to win his cases in the circuit court. 
He disHked the supreme court and seldom appealed a case — seldom had an 
occasion to appeal, for he was renowned as a "verdict getter." He enjoyed 
up to the time of his death, in 1890, a large and lucrative practice in central 
Indiana and in his prime was generally regarded as the Napoleon of the 
]Iendricks county bar. 

Peter .S. Kenned}^, another Kentuckian, was contemporaneous with ^\r. 
Campbell and was generally regarded as his yoke-fellow. He was a ripe 
lawyer, a good writer and really enjoyed presenting his argument to the 
supreme court better than to the circuit court or jury. In 1865 he moved 
with his family to Crawfordsville, where he spent the balance of his days. 

In 1866 there came to the Hendricks county bar Jesse S. Ogden, a 
Virginian, who, for brilliancy in letters, eloquence in speech and loveableness 
in social intercourse, never had a superior, and perhap ■ never an equal, at this 
bar. Mr. Ogden left his mountain home in 1858 to seek his fortune in the 
West. He arrived in Danville in November, impecunious, but full of am- 
bition. His first job of work was to undertake, with a negro, to cut ten 
cords of wood for Levi Ritter for ten dollars. He entered the Danville 
Academy as janitor in 1859 and thus, in services, he paid his tuition for two 
school years and until .Vugust, 1861, when he left his school and enlisted m 
the Seventh Indiana Infantry. On the 22d of March, 1862, at the battle of 
Winchester, Virginia, he received a severe wound in the right hand — in fact, 
three of his fingers were literally carried away with a minie ball and thus 
he was disqualified for further army service. He returned to Dan^'ille, was 
elected recorder of the county and while serving in that capacity spent liis 
idle hours in reading law. He subseciuently attended law school at Indian- 
apolis and w^as admitted to the bar in 1866 and took up the practice of law 
as his life work. He at once took high rank at the bar and was elected prose- 
cuting attorney in 1870. He was a hard worker and a close thinker and 
seldom went before court or jury without having the merits of his case and 
the law well in hand and also his course of procedure and the points in his 
argument fully determined. His eloquence was not excelled in central Indi- 
ana. Its excellence consisted chiefly in its grace of delivery, sweet musical 
voice and superb selection of his words. He spoke w'ith ease and energy, 
without being boisterous, and never put himself forward or overtaxed his 
audience. In 1869 he formed a partnership for the practice of his profession, 
with his friend and comrade in the army, John V. Hadley, which partnershi]:) 
continued happily and profitably until Mr. Ogden's death, on February 20, 
1897, in the thirty-eighth year of his age. 



156 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Many other nienibers of the local bar deserve special mention, but space 
forbids. The bar from the beginning has always maintained, for strength 
and character, 'a high place among the bars of the state. It has been uni- 
formly composed of citizens of high character — enterprising, moral, debt 
paying, temperate, with a very rare exception and strictly honorable with the 
court and with each other professionally. It has ahvays been held that a 
promise or statement of fact to an opposing attorney' relative to a pending 
cause M^as as binding as an order of the court. Except in cases where oppos- 
ing counsel desires the facts relied on in the record preparatory to an appeal, 
an afiftdavit for a continuance or other matter is unknow^n to the Danville 
bar. If delay is desired the counsel desiring appears before t!ie court in the 
presence of his opponent and states his reasons for the request. The request 
is often resisted, but the facts as stated upon which it rests are never called in 
question. Ihe effect is that the l)ar is always on the most friendly terms. 

Quite a number who had their early and first training at the Danville 
bar afterwards became eminent lawyers and jurists elsewhere. Solomon 
Blair, William Irvin, Joshua G. Adams and Newton M. Taylor were after- 
ward elected to the bench in Indianapolis. Richard B. Blake was the first 
judge elected to the superior bench in the city of vSpokane under the organ- 
ization of the state of Washington and continued thereon for years and until 
he voluntarily resigned to take up in the city a general practice more lucrative. 
Enoch G. Hcgate was called years ago to become dean of the law school of 
the State University where he still presides with great credit to himself and 
profit to the young men under his instructions. 

John V. Hadley was the first member of the local bar elected to the 
circuit bench, then composed of Marion and Hendricks counties. He was 
first elected in the fall of 1886,, re-elected in 1892, elected to the state supreme 
bench in 1898 and re-elected to the latter in 1904, and voluntarily retired 
therefrom January 2, 1911. 

Thomas J. Gofer, by appointment and election, occupied the local circuit 
bench from the fall of 1898 to the fall of 1906. 

James L. Clark was elected in 1906 to succeed Judge Gofer and in 
January, 191 3, was appointed by the governor to the public utilities com- 
mission and is now serving thereon with much credit for fairness and com- 
mercial comprehension. 

George W. Brill was elected in 191 2 to succeed Judge Glark and is now 
occupying the bench with ability and general satisfaction. 

The Hendricks Gounty Bar Association is now composed of the following 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 157 

gentlemen : Thad S. Adams, Levi A. Barnctt, Edgar M. Blessing, James L. 
Clark, Thomas J. Cofer, Zimri Dongan, James A. Downard, George E. 
Easley, S. A. Enloe, Fred D. Ensminger, D. 'P. Etris. William J. Goff, Otis E. 
Gulley, Horace L. Hanna, Geo. C. Harvey, Drennen Harvey, George Harvey, 
Jr., C. L. Hollowell, Robert T. Hollowell, John Hume, C. E. Gaston, J. W. 
Nichols, George T. Pattison, Charles V. Sears, J. P. Snodgrass, John C. 
Taylor, John W. Trotter, Alf. Walters, and William Westerfield. 



I 



CHAPTER XXII. 



EDUCATION. 



The growth of education in Hendricks connty has been very rapid. 
From the verv beginning of the connty nntil the present day the thought of 
education has been a predominate one. The first settler thought of the learn- 
ing which should be imparted to his child and until the day of school houses, 
or the teacher who "l)oarded around," the child drew his letters at his mother's 
knee. Of the early schools and school houses there are many interesting 
things which have been written. The sturdy beech trees for the most part 
supplied the material from which the first school houses were constructed. 
The walls were built of the trunks, the puncheon floors, log seats and desks 
arranged around the wall were likewise split from the trunk of forest trees. 
Heat was forthcoming from a huge fireplace at one end of the cabin ; windows 
were opened by sawing out sections of logs and placing in the opening a rude 
sash, with oiled paper in place of glass. 

The course of study provided by the stern pedagogue was nearly as crude 
as the house in which he taught. Geography, reading, .-pelling and arithmetic 
and writing were the standard subjects and whenever a pupil exhibited a dis- 
like to them he was often helped over the difficulty by the beech rod, which 
reposed on two pegs above the master's desk. It is told that many of the 
early masters were possessed of very little more knowledge of their subjects 
than the pupils. Many a bright youngster came to grief because he took ex- 
ceptions to assertions of his teacher. 

FIRST SCHOOLS IN THE COUNTY. 

In the summer of 1823 two school houses had been luiilt. one of them in 
Liberty town-hip, half a mile south of Cartersburg, and the other on Thomas 
Lockhart's land in Guilford township. \A'illiam Hinton and Abijah Pinson 
were engaged as teachers. In 1824 a school was taught in Danville by 
Wesley McKinley. The first school in Eel River township was taught about 
1829 in a house a half mile southeast of North Salem, by William Dewitt. 
It was said this man had fled from New Orleans for some crime, joined a 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. I59 

pirate vessel, and with it sailed more than once around the world, finally 
leaving the vessel to seek a new life in the North. He was a man of intel- 
ligence and one of the best of the pioneer instrnctors. He died in Xorth 
Salem, it is said, at the unusual age of one hundred and fifteen vears. The 
first school in Franklin township was taught in 183 1 by Jndiah ^^'hite, one 
mile south of Stilesville. The district consisted of two townships. Thomas 
Barker was successor to White in this school. He was a good teacher, but 
somewhat fond of "red-eye." Often, at noon recess, he would go to the 
village and return in an intoxicated condition and then would devote the after- 
noon to amusing the scholars by his antics. In 1831 Eli Lee taught the first 
school in Stilesville, in connection with his trade of shoemaker. Alfred 
Lineberry taught the first school in Middle township in 1835 on Samuel 
Hill's farm, for ten dollars per month. 

BEGINNING OF A NEW ERA. 

Much progress had been made in the schools of the county at the begin- 
ning of the seventies. Then was the beginning of definite organization. 
The log school house had long disappeared from the countv. Bv the vear 
1884 there was even a vaster improvement. At this date there were 108 
school buildings. 54 of these were brick and the rest of frame. There were 
4,000 pupils in attendance at the brick schools, out of 7,082 in the countv. 
There were 147 teachers, 85 of them male. The total school enrollment of 
this year was but 5,836. The total expenditures for school purposes in 1884 
amounted to $94,303.86. 

THE COMMON SCHOOLS 

The common schools were first provided for by the constitution of 1816. 
The Legislature of 1837 provided that land sold for taxes and escheated 
estates should be used for public school purposes. The law provided that 
any public school district might draw fifty dollars from such fund for the 
erection of a school house. This was for the encouragement of the common 
schools. In 1848 the people of a district could vote for or against a tax to 
maintain schools from three to six months. In 1850 a special tax was 
authorized. The greatest impetus given the common schools came from the 
constitution of 185 1. "Knowledge and learning generall}' diffused through- 
out a community, being essential to the preservation of a free government, 
it shall be the duty of the General Assembly to encourage, by all equitable 



l60 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

means, moral, intellectual, scientific and agricultural improvement, and to 
provide, by law, for a general and uniform system of common schools, 
wherein tuition shall be without charge and equally open to all." Section 2 
of article 8 provides for the common school fund, the principal of which can 
never be reduced. 

In 1855 free schools were authorized in cities and towns. The grade 
schools and the high schools have grown up since 1873. The academies were 
converted into public schools and high schools in most cases. 

teachers' institutes. 

The county institute was established in the year 1865. In 1901 the act 
of 1865 '^^'^s amended so that if twenty-five teachers were in attendance, 
thirty-five dollars could be drawn from the county treasury; if forty were in 
attendance, tifty dollars; if seventy-five, one hundred dollars. In 1907 the 
auditor was given power by the Legislature to draw his warrant upon the 
treasurer for one hundred dollars for the purpose of defraying the expenses 
of the county institute regardless of the number of teachers in attendance. 

In some instances the efficiency of the township institute has been im- 
paired through the indifference of a few teachers. For the purpose of 
eliminating this handicap it has become necessary to create conditions un- 
favorable to the development of this indifference, so that the responsibility 
may be fixed and co-operation attained. To this end a monthly report has 
to be made to the county superintendent by each institute. This report will 
show the enrollment, explain the cause of tardiness, absence and other irregu- 
larities, and will show in per cent, the chairman's estimate of each teacher's 
preparation for the day. If each teacher makes careful preparation of all the 
Reading Circle work and any special topic that may be required individually, 
the chairman reports the work well done. 

-Approximately three thousand dollars were spent in Hendricks county 
in 1913 for the support of the township institutes. 

The county agriculture agent will soon be at the service of the teachers 
in township institute work. Joint sessions will be arranged for his con- 
venience, so that all teachers may have the opportunity of gaining practical 
information which he will impart in the interest of vocational education. 

township trustee. 

In the first survey of western lands, congress set apart a section of land 
in every township, generally the sixteenth, for school purposes, the disposition 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. l6l 

of the land to be in the hands of the residents of the respective townships. 
In 1829 the township was provided with three trustees elected for one year 
at the September election. These members appointed a clerk. The duties of 
the trustees were to divide their township school lands into convenient sizes 
for sale and set a minimum price, not less than a dollar and twenty-live cents 
per acre. It was the duty of the school commissioner to sell the lands thus 
divided to the highest bidder. 

The law of 1838 provided that a civil township should have three town- 
ship trustees, selected for a term of three years, one elected each year. These 
appointed a clerk and a treasurer. These officers were to build roads and care 
for them and divide the township into school districts. There were in each 
school district three district trustees whose duty it was to examine and em- 
ploy teachers. In 1849 o^^^ district trustee was provided for each school 
district in place of three. His duties were practically those of the three. 
He was paid seventy-five cents per day, as were also the tow-nship trustees. 

In 1859 the "civil township was declared a school township," and "the 
trustee for such a township shall be trustee, treasurer and clerk." It was this 
law w^hich created the present township trustee, though subsequent legislation 
has added much to his list of duties and largely increased his power. 

In 1865 the voters of a school district met the first Saturday in October 
and elected one director. The duties of this official were to call meetings of 
the district voters and preside. The meeting could appoint the teacher for 
the district; determine the branches to be taught in addition to the common 
branches provided by law, and could set the term of school under two limita- 
tions. The power of employing and paying teachers belonged to the town- 
ship trustee. 

In 1873 the district meeting with the director lost the power of appoint- 
ing the teacher. The duty fell into the hands of the township trustee. From 
this time to the present the office of director has gradually fallen into disuse. 

In 1883 the Legislature placed some limitations upon the trustee's power 
in employing teachers which were removed by the act of 1901. Under this 
act, although the advisory board since 1899 has limited his power in tw^o direc- 
tions, viz., tax levies and the number of days he may be employed as trustee, 
the trustee is in complete control of the schools of his township. He has the 
auth(?rity to ask patrons, w^hile taking the enumeration, what their preferences 
are, if any. and thus has a guide in selecting his teachers for the next year. 
This custom has grown out of the directors' meetings and taken their place. 
(II) 



l62 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

The trustees of Hendricks county in 1914 are: Brown township. C. F. 
Pennington; Center, J. W. Whyte; Clay, WiUiam Hunt; Eel River, S. D. 
Noland; Franklin, T. R. Ruark; Guilford, B. W. Anderson; Liberty, C. E. 
Shields; Lincoln, B. A. White; Marion, Obed Underwood; Middle, R. L. 
Dillon; Union, J- T. Hocker, and Washington, C. M. Roark 

THE COUNTY SUPERINTENDENT. 

The county superintendent was given large duties by the text book law 
of 1889. He makes the requisition for all books used in the county ; he is the 
bookkeeper for each of the school book contractors ; and he collects from each 
corporation handling the books as well as from the various dealers. A recent 
act of the Legislature, however, relieves the superintendent of all these duties 
except the matter of making requisitions. 

The county superintendent has the general superintendence of the schools 
of his county. He must attend each township institute at least once in each 
school year and as often thereafter as possible, and preside over and conduct 
its exercises. He shall visit schools while they are in session for the purpose 
of increasing their usefulness and elevating, as far as practicable, the poor 
schools to the standard of the best. He must conduct teachers' institutes and 
encourage other like associations and shall labor, in every way, to elevate the 
standard of teaching and to improve the education of the schools of the 
county. In all controversies of a general nature arising under the school 
law, the decision of a county superintendent must first be obtained. It is 
his duty at all times to carry, out the orders and instructions of the state board 
of education and the state superintendent of public instruction. The same 
Legislature which enumerated the above duties of the county superintendent 
also relieved him of the supervision of cities and towns with superintendents. 

HIGH SCHOOL STATISTICS. 

There are high schools at present in Hendricks county at the following 
towns : Amo, Clay township ; North Salem, Eel River township ; Stilesville, 
Franklin township; Plainfield, Guilford township; Clayton, Liberty town- 
ship; Brownsburg, Lincoln township; New Winchester, ]\'Iarion township; 
Pittsboro, Middle township; Lizton, Union township, and Danville, Center 
township. All of these high schools are commissioned by the state board of 
education with the exception of those at New Winchester and Lizton. The 
latter is to be commissioned this year. The total enrollment in 1913 was six 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 163 

hundred and forty-eight, with thirty-one teachers. The high schools are 
well regulated in the county and a course is divided into semesters of a half 
year, sixteen weeks each. Thirty-two credits are required for graduation, 
with music and drawing in addition. A system of uniform high school text 
books was adopted by the state board of school book commissioners on July 
24, 1913, for a period of five years. This regulation does not restrict the 
work of the schools, for the books allowed are many and excellent texts. 
The high schools in the county are in excellent condition, all attention being 
turned towards modeling them after the most modern laws promulgated by 
the leading minds in the educational and legislative world. Athletics are 
being featured and meets are held annually, beginning with 19 14. in which 
all the high schools of the county join. This has a tendency, and a strong 
one. of drawing the students closer together and promoting a healthier and 
better spirit. The county, as compared with the others in the state, ranks 
among the first six in educational excellence. Nearly all of the high schools 
are housed in new buildings, built according to the most scientific and hygienic 
rules of school house construction. New structures are going up at present 
at Hazlewood, Avon and Amo, the latter to cost twenty-nine thousand dol- 
lars. Consolidation is the ultimate aim of every township, and this is being 
largely effected. In Brown township, as there is no town, an effort will be 
made to establish a community center. 

19 1 3 STATISTICS. 

The total enrollment for the year 19 12- 13 by townships is as follows: 
Brown, 170; Center, 236; Clay, z|28; Eel River, 427; Franklin. 231 ; Guilford. 
563: Liberty, 528; Lincoln, 425; Marion, 227; Middle, 304; Union, 243; 
Washington, 222, making a total of 4,004. Danville had enrolled 448 pupils, 
which raises the grand total to 4,452. This number includes the pupils in 
grade schools and the high schools together. 

In the county there were 425 pupils enrolled in commissioned high 
schools; in certified high schools, 202; in non-certified high schools, 17; in 
private or parochial schools giving primar}^ or secondary instruction, 74. 

There were 152 teachers employed in the schools of the countv in 1913. 
who were paid for their services, $76,844.58. 

There are seventy-eight school houses in the county, seventy of them 
being brick and eight frame. The estimated value of all this school propertv 
is $395,500. 

There were, in 19 13, 6,020 volumes in the school libraries. 



164 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

The enumeration of the pupils in school attendance in the county issued 
in May, 1914, places the number at 5,309, showing a net loss of 74 over last 
year. 

CENTRAL NORMAL COLLEGE. 

The chief educational feature of Hendricks county is the Central Normal 
College, located at the county seat, Danville. The college is a normal school 
for prospective teachers and supplies a need in the educational world which, 
not so many years ago, was an unsatisfied one. 

The school had its origin back in the year 1876, at Ladoga, Mont- 
gomery county, Indiana. Prof. W. F. Harper and Prof. J. W. Dar. t were 
the founders of the school and the first term under their manageuient saw but 
forty-eight students enrolled. The outlook at that time was far from 
encouraging and the existence of the school continued solely on account of 
the far-sightedness and courage of the two founders. They worked un- 
ceasingly for the good of their school and their efforts were crowned with 
success. At the end of the first year twelve students, having completed the 
course prescribed by the institution, received the degree of Batchelor of 
Science. Near the close of the year, Professor Darst having resigned, F>ank 
P. Adams, of Kentucky, came and assisted Professor Harper and was after- 
ward president of the college. 

The second year of the school's existence opened in an encouraging man- 
ner. Many students came and it became evident that larger accommodations 
would have to be secured in order to care for the increased attendance. 
Efforts were made to raise enough money to build a school house adequate 
for the need and many people interested themselves to the extent of giving 
cash. However, there were others who refused to aid. This lost the school 
to Ladoga. On May 10, 1878. arrangements having been made, vehicles sup- 
plied by the people of Danville went over to Ladoga and hauled the teachers, 
their hundred and seventy-five students, and their personal belongings, in- 
cluding the school apparatus, over to Danville. The old Seminary l)uilding 
was remodeled for the use of the school. This building had been the home 
of the Methodist Academy. The procession through the countrv and the 
reception given in Danville were events of great importance. The good 
people of Danville opened their homes to the teachers and student, and school 
was not interrupted. Classes were resumed in the new location as if notliing 
had ever happened. By ])opular subscription the citizens of Danville pur- 
chased the Academy building and the Methodist Episcopal church 



I 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 165 

deeded the property to Prof. William Harper and he deeded it to Professor 
Adams in 1879. 

On November 25, 1882, Professor Adams was called by death, at the 
age of thirty years. 

The institution was the property of Professor Adams and before his 
death he requested his wife, Mrs. Ora Adams, to assume the presidency, 
with Prof. John A. Steele as vice-president. Every friend of the college 
rallied to the support of the new officials, so that there was no check in its 
educational or financial progress. The college building was improved, a 
large boarding house erected and a handsome residence constructed for Mrs. 
Adams. 

But misfortune was again to come. In 1884 Professor Steele became 
ill with tuberculosis and in May, 1885, passed to his death. During the ill- 
ness of Professor Steele his work gradually passed into the hands of Charles 
A. Hargrave, who, since April. 1883. had been his assistant in class and office. 
He was known as the secretary and treasurer of the college and through him 
the plans of the college were executed. 

On July 10, 1889, President Adams was married to James A. Joseph. 
Desiring to be relieved of public duties, she promoted Professor Hargrave to 
the presidency. Miss A. Kate Huron was made vice-president and Professor 
Joseph, secretary and treasurer. At the close of the school year in 1S90 
Professor Joseph assumed the presidency. He had already begun tlie erec- 
tion of a large additional building, now known as Chapel Hall, just across the 
street west of the original building. The attendance increased and additional 
instructors were employed. The enrollment the spring term of 1891 \vas 
seven hundred and seventy-one students. 

In August, 1900, a stock company of eight}' citizens of Danville bought 
the college of Professor and Mrs. Joseph. From that time on it has been 
managed by a board of trustees. The first board consisted of the following- 
members : Thomas J. Cofer, president; G. L. Spillman, secretary: Town'^'^nd 
Cope, I. N. Estcp. H. S. Dickey, Jonathan Rigdon. C. A. Hargrave. Col- 
lege officials were elected as follows : Jonathan Rigdon. president ; G. L. 
Spillman, vice-president; C. A. Hargrave. secretary and treasurer. In 1903 
both Professor Rigdon and Spillman resigned. Their successors were A. J. 
Kinnaman and G. W. Dunlavy, Doctor Kinnaman resigned in 1906 and 
Professor Dunlavy was made his successor, and John W. Laird was elected 
vice-president. Professor Dunlavy's health failed in two years and he re- 
tired to take up farm life. Professor Laird was elected president and still 
holds this position. Prof. H. M. Whisler was made vice-president. 



i66 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



In 191 1 the college was reincorporated, under a new Indiana law. with- 
out capital stock, the stockholders donating their stock. It is controlled by a 
self-perpetuating board of trustees, serving without compensation. The 
board is as follows: Otis E. Gulley, president; George T. Pattison, secretary; 
W. C. Osborne, J. D. Hogate, Mord Carter. Dr. W. T. Lawson and C. A.' 
Hargrave. 

The institution stands high with the educational public and receives a 
large patronage. The attendance for the summer term of 19 12 was seven 
hundred and four students. Up to this time the college has been self-sup- 
porting. It has never had any help to pay operating expenses. It has been 
entirely independent of church, state or endowment. Former students now 
fill Indiana state offices as follows: S. M. Ralston, governor; Charles A. 
Greathouse, superintendent of public instruction; Philip Zoercher, reporter 
of supreme court; Edward Barrett, state geologist; E. W. McDaniels. assist- 
ant reporter of supreme court; John W. Spencer, judge of supreme court: 
Edward W. Felt, judge of appellate court; James L. Clark, Thomas R. Dun 
can, members of state utilities commission; Thomas C. McReynolds. mem- 
ber of Panama exposition commission. 

CENTRAL NORMAL COLLEGE LIBRARY. 

This library had its beginning in the private library of a few scarce 
volumes of the first president of the college in 1876. For'many years it con- 
tained numerous good books loaned by the professors of the college. Addi- 
tions were made from year to year by purchase and donations until the num- 
ber of volumes reached into the thousands, exclusive of statistical reports 
that are still kept, but not given shelf room. 

The books have been carefully selected, the needs of the students and 
the college alone being considered. The general public have always been 
invited to use the library, but not many have accepted on account' of the 
special character of the books. That the selections have been wiselv made is 
known from the use of the 'library by the students. Those taking literary 
courses may be found there every day. The library is located in Chanel 
Hall. ^ 

BELLEVILLE ACADEMY. 

In the thirties a log house was erected in the southeast part of Belleville, 
and was later supplanted by a frame structure. In 1852 Dr. L. H. Kennedy, 
John Miles, Thomas Irons, James Hadley, Dr. R. C. Moore formed a stock 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. l6j 

company with a capital of five thousand dollars for the erection of an impos- 
ing and commodious brick structure for the housing of an academy. The 
articles of association were written by a Danville lawver named for 
Witherow. Early in 1853 the new building was begun and on July 23, 
1853, was dedicated by Governor James A. Wright. Shortly before the 
dedication L. M. Campbell, a Kentuckian, opened a school in the old frame 
building. He continued until November, when he joined hands with Prof. 
J. R. Woodfill, of Ripley county and the two moved into the new brick and 
began the first term of school in the academy. This academy is now out of 
existence. 



CHAPTER XXIII. 

MISCELLANEOUS. 



AGRICULTURE. 



Hendricks county is one of the richest agricultural counties in the state. 
In addition to this, there is a large amount of stock raising done in the 
county. The presence of valuable grazing land in all of the townships i^ 
accountable for this. The tilling of the soil, with its kindred vocations, how- 
ever, is the greatest industry in Hendricks. 

The county has an area of four hundred and eighty square miles or 
three hundred seven thousand two hundred acres. Very nearly two-thirds 
of the population live in the country. The farmers own about nine-tenths 
of the taxable property. The soil of the county is well adapted to cereals, 
especially corn, wheat and oats. The leading cereal grown is corn, a yield 
of one hundred bushels per acre being not uncommon. The average to the 
acre, however, is about forty bushels and aggregates about two million bushels 
per annum. 

Wheat comes next to corn, with an average of fifteen bushels to the 
acre. In an ordinary wheat year the county produces about four hundred 
and fifty thousand bushels. Oats is not raised as extensively as corn and 
wheat, but is considered a profitable crop for feeding purposes. Over four 
hundred and fifty thousand bushels are produced each vear, being worth in 
the neighobrhood of one hundred and fifty thousand' dollars. There are 
about forty thousand tons of hay put in the mows annuallv, and scarcely a 
day passes but that you may see several loads on the wav to' the Indianapolis 
markets. Most of the hay is timothy. Clover is raised in al^undance for 
seed and for its fertilizing finalities and is considered one of the most profit- 
able crops in the county. 

Every farm in the county has some kind of fence around it and most of 
the fences are in good condition. Quite a number of the old rail fences are 
yet to be seen, some board, hedge, picket, barbed ^^•ire, but chiefiv woven wire 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 169 

Tiled ditches, which are in general use, have greatly increased the productive- 
ness of the soil. 

The county has many fine herds of Hereford, Shorthorn, Jersey and 
Guernsey cattle. Thousands of stock cattle are bought at the stock yards 
and fed on the pasture land. These pasture lands are mostly bluegrass, but 
little inferior to the bluegrass regions of Kentucky. Hogs and sheep are 
raised extensively and are a very profitable part of present-day farming. 
Poultry is also raised extensively and there is scarcely a farm but has 
chickens, geese and ducks. 

The finest and most expensive homes in the country have been con- 
structed by the farmers. Many of them have been equipped with all mod- 
ern improvements and conveniences. 

It will be interesting to the reader to present the following figures, taken 
from the United States census report of 1910: 

Number of all farms in Hendricks county, 2,786; land area, 261,120 
acres; land in farms, 254,159 acres; value of all, $28,677,219; in 1900 the 
value of farm lands was $14,776,661 ; of domestic animals, $2,518,444. The 
total value of crops for the year 1910 was $2,580,853. Of this amount 
$2,075,821 was the value of cereals and $3,949 the value of other grains and 
seeds. Hay and forage was worth $300,262; vegetables, $90,637; fruits and 
nuts, $50,739; and all other crops, $50,445. 

ROADS. 

The progress of the good roads movement in Hendricks county during 
the past few years has been truly remarkable. It is a fact that during the year 
19 10 there were only two and eight-tenths miles of gravel road constructed 
under the law for improving highways in the county. It was at this point 
that the improvement of highways began. By the year 19 12 there was a total 
of two hundred and forty-seven miles of gravel road in the county. Today 
there is about five hundred miles of improved, gravel and macadam road in 
the county. The expenditures for road viewing and surveying in 1911 was 
$63.10; for bridges, $41,895.49. The townshi]) gravel road bonds outstand- 
ing in 191 1 amounted to $294,587.91. 

STATISTICS. 

From the state statistician's report for 19 13 there are many interesting 
facts concerning Hendricks county. They are as follows : 



170 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

The total population of Hendricks county is 20,840 people, male, white, 
10,533; female, white, 10,002; colored, male, 225; colored, female, 76; In- 
dians, Japanese and others, 4; foreign-born, white, 172; number of dwell- 
ings, 5.204; number of families, 5,262. 

To give some idea of the court business for a year, the following is 
given for 1910: Number of cases filed, 200; disposed of, 201; venued to 
. her counties, 7; venued from other counties, 15; children's cases in juve- 
nile court, 2; letters of administration issued, 48; guardianships issued, 19; 
decrees of foreclosures entered, 3; sheriff's sales, 22; adjudged of unsound 
mind, 9; marriage licenses issued, 140. 

EARLY PURCHASES. 

An old book in which the general store accounts were kept in an early 
day gives many items of curious interest. It is recorded that on June 7, 
1836, Abbird Thompson bought "i caster hat" and "i hymn book" for 
thirty-five cents. Another is that Mrs. Stephen Stephenson bought in 1836 
"5 yards of calico" for $1.56^. John Scott bought "^-^ pound of powder" 
for twelve and a half cents, and "one-half dozen flints" for six and one-fourth 
cents. Jesse Baker bought "^ gallon of whiskey" for 37^ cents and John 
Collins bought "i comic almanac" for twelve cents. 

orphans' home. 

In the month of February, 1903, the children from the Orphans' Home 
were transferred to other homes. The girls were taken from here to the 
Fort Wayne Home for Girls and the boys were taken to- White Institute 
in charge of the Friends in Wabash county. Some other boys were taken 
to Brightside, near Plymouth, Indiana. 

GAME PRESERVES. 

There are three game preserves in Hendricks county stocked with various 
kinds of imported pheasants. The first lies in the southwest corner of Guil- 
ford township and extends into Marion county. It contains fourteen thou- 
sand acres, sixty per cent, of which is in Hendricks. One-fourth of it is 
timberland, mostly level, some of it rolling, with ravines and gulleys. Flow- 
ing through it from north to south is Clark creek. 

The second preserve lies near the center of the county two miles north 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. I/I 

of Danville. It contains sixty-five hundred acres of land, one-fifth of which 
is in timber, with much copse and underbrush. A small per cent, of the 
lands are hilly. Most of them are level, but some of them rolling. White 
Lick creek, with its tributaries, supply it with water. 

The third preserve lies south of the center of the county, in Clay and 
Franklin townships. It contains sixty-two hundred acres, one-fifth of which 
is in woodland, with much copse and underbrush. The lands are rather 
level. The east and middle branches of Mill creek supply the water. Neither 
has yet proved successful, chiefly on account of hawks. 

The first interurban car ran into Danville at 11:05 a. m., August 30, 
1906, over the Indianapolis and Western, now a division of the Terre Haute, 
Indianapolis & Eastern. 

On July 4, 1907. the Brazil division of the Terre Haute, Indianapolis & 
Eastern was opened to Terre Haute and in the same year the Ben-Hur line 
was opened from Indianapolis to Crawfordsville, passing through Browns- 
burg, Lizton and Pittsboro. 

POPULATION OF TOWNSHIPS. 
I9IO. 

Brown 862 

Center 3,145 

Clay 1,832 

Eel River 1.867 

Guilford 3,188 

Liberty 2,213 

Lincoln 1,603 

Marion 1,046 

Middle 1.584 

Union 1,106 

Washington 1,387 

Franklin 1,007 

POPULATION OF COUNTY BY DECADES. 

In 1824 there were approximately six hundred people in Hendricks 
county: in 1830 there were 3,975; in 1840, 11,264; in 1850, 14,083; in i860, 
16,953; iri 1870, 20,277; ii^ 1880, 22,981; in 1890, 21,498; in 1900, 21,292; 
and in 19 10. 20,840. 



1900. 


1890. 


1,032 


1,093 


3.349 


3,221 


1,677 


1,673 


1,986 


1,905 


2,707 


2,609 


2,452 


2,578 


1,474 


1,452 


1,090 


1,097 


1,644 


1,837 


1.239 


1,362 


1.395 


1,382 


1,247 


1,289 



BIOGRAPHICAL 



JUDGE JOHN V. HADLEY. 

To indulge in prolix encomium of a life which has been one of dis- 
tinctive modesty and unpretentiousness would be most incongruous, and yet 
in reviewing the career of Judge John V. Hadley, long one of the most 
prominent and highly honored citizens of Hendricks county, feelings of 
admiration are prompted, for he has ever held a position of unequivocal con- 
fidence and esteem in the community where he has so long resided. As 
citizen, soldier, lawyer and jurist, Judge Hadley 's career has been a notable 
one, and for this reason his life record is entitled to a conspicuous place in 
the annals of his county. 

John V. Hadley is a native son of Hendricks county, Indiana, born on 
the 31st day of October, 1840, and is a son of Jonathan and Ara (Carter) 
Hadley, who were natives, respectively, of North Carolina and Ohio. They 
were the parents of seven children, of whom five grew to maturity, Enos, 
Harlan, William C. John V. and Mary, all being now deceased excepting 
John V. 

The subject's paternal grandparents were Jeremiah and Sarah (Horna- 
day) Hadley, natives of Guilford county, North Carolina, where the father 
followed the vocation of farming. In 1822 they made the long and tiresome 
overland journey to Indiana, stopping first at Indianapolis, which at that time 
was but a small and unpretentious village. Because of the prevalence of 
typhoid fever there at that particular time, Jeremiah Hadley continued his 
journey westward, locating permanently near what is now Plainfield, Hend- 
ricks county. There he cleared and improved a farm, reared a family of 
children, and there he and his w^ife spent the remainder of their days, dying 
at advanced ages. Among their children were Jonathan,^ Elias, John, Ruth 
and others whose names are not recorded. In religion, Jeremiah Hadley 
was a birthright Quaker, but lost his birthright by marrying outside the 
church. 

Jonathan Hadley, father of the subject, was reared to manhood in Guil- 



174 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ford county. North Carolina, where he followed agricultural pursuits. He 
and his wife accompanied his father on the emigration to Hendricks county, 
Indiana, others in the company being David Carter, a son-in-law of Jeremiah 
Hadley, and his wife, also two other sons of Jeremiah Hadley. Elias and 
John, who subsequently went to Ohio, there married sisters of Jonathan's 
wife, and, returning to Hendricks county, took up land adjoining the other 
meml3ers of the family, the present site of Plainfield and for about a half 
mile south and one mile north on east shore of White Lick being the family 
possessions. Jeremiah and Jonathan Hadley and David Carter at once began 
clearing the land, and as soon as enough logs were cut" they each erected a 
one-room log cabin, in which they established their permanent homes. Thus 
the Hadleys are properly numbered among the true pioneers of Hendricks 
county, and through the years they have proven a valuable element in the 
civic life of this favored locality. In that early day Indians were numerous 
here, though as a rule they were not hostile to the white settlers. Rattle- 
snakes were much more to be feared, while wolves, bear and many other 
species of wild game were abundant. For a number of years all of the 
settlers in this immediate locality were Hadleys and Carters, all of whom 
reared large families. Jonathan Hadley accumulated two hundred acres of 
land, which he brought to a high state of improvement, and to the cultivation 
of which he devoted himself until his death, from typhoid fever, at the com- 
paratively early age of forty years. He was survived a number of years by 
his widow, who passed away in 1866, at the age of sixty-three years. Both 
were members of the Christian (Disciples) church, to which they rendered 
faithful allegiance, and enjoyed to a marked degree the confidence and respect 
of all who knew them. 

Judge Hadley's maternal grandparents were Mordecai and Sarah Carter, 
who were farming folk, residing near Collinsville, Ohio. They never left 
their native heath, dying there when well advanced in years. Their children 
were Harlan, James, John, Ara (mother of the subject), Lucinda and an- 
other daughter. 

John V. Hadley was reared to manhood on his father's farm, where 
there was plenty of work to do and where, in close touch with nature, he 
formed those habits of industry, perseverance and independence which char- 
acterized his later years. His elementary educational training was received in 
the old-fashioned subscription schools of that locality, and he afterwards 
entered Northwestern Christian University (now Butler College), where he 
remained two years, his studies being interrupted by the outbreak of the war 
between the states. In response to his country's need of defenders, he laid aside 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 1/5 

his text-books and, on August 20, 1861, enlisted as a private in Company B, 
Seventh Regiment Indiana Vohmteer Infantry, serving his country faithfully 
until receiving his honorable discharge on March 22, 1865. He was pro- 
moted from the ranks to first lieutenant and was then detailed on Gen. J. C. 
Rice's staff, where he rendered the remainder of his service. He took part 
in many of the hardest fought battles of that great internecine conflict and 
was twice wounded, first at the second battle of Bull Run, and again at the 
battle of the Wilderness. At the latter place he was left unconscious and 
helpless on the battlefield, was taken prisoner and for three weeks was con- 
fined in a Confederate field hospital and then sent south as a prisoner. He 
was first confined in the prison at Macon. Georgia, whence he was sent to 
Savannah, Georgia, then to 'Charleston, South Carolina, and finally to Colum- 
bia, South Carolina. From the latter place he escaped on November 4. 1864, 
and, after enduring many hardships and passing through many dangers, he 
succeeded in reaching the Union lines at Knoxville, Tennessee, on the lOth 
day of December following. Mr. Hadley wrote an interesting and dramatic 
account of his imprisonment and escape, which, under the title of "Seven 
Months a Prisoner," was published by Scribner & Sons in 1898, in a little 
volume of the Ivory series. 

After his return to peaceful pursuits, Mr. Hadley took up the study of 
law and attended the private school of Judge David McDonald in Indian- 
apolis. In June, 1866, he was admitted to the Hendricks county bar at Dan- 
ville and immediately entered upon the active practice of his profession here, 
being so engaged when, in 1886, he was elected to the circuit bench of 
Hendricks and Marion counties. So satisfactory were his services as a jurist 
that in 1892 he was elected to succeed himself and during the ten years that he 
presided over this circuit he gained a wide reputation as an able, careful and 
conscientious judge, so that in 1898 a well-deserved promotion came to him 
in his election to the supreme bench of the state. He was re-elected to the 
supreme bench in 1904 and served until 191 1, when he retired of his own 
accord, and has since devoted himself chiefly to his private business affairs 
and looking after his farm. 

x\s a lawyer. Judge Hadley early won a high reputation as a successful 
and adroit attorney and he enjoyed a large and representative clientele in 
Hendricks and neighboring counties. As a jurist, he in no way disappointed 
those who knew him, for in him there are embodied a weight of character, a 
native sagacity, a far-seeing judgment and a fidelity of purpose which enabled 
him at all times to not only get to the bottom of facts, but to quickly and 
accurately comprehend the fine points of the questions at issue. While on the 



176 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

supreme bench Judge Hadley's decisions were characterized by a clearness, 
candor and breadth of view which have made them authority on many fine 
points of law assigned to him for interpretation. Among the important 
decisions written by Judge Hadley while on the supreme bench, involving the 
constitutionality of legislative enactments, were the following: The act con- 
cerning municipal improvements, known as the Barrett Law, 154 Ind. 467; 
For the Protection of Wild Game, 155 Ind. 611; An Act to Regulate 
Dentistry, 156 Ind. 187; the Pure Food Law, 157 Ind. 517; An Act to De- 
prive Ft. Wayne of Local Self-Government, 158 Ind. 126; the Weekly Wage 
Law, Republic Iron and Steel Co. v. State, 160 Ind. 379; the Status of the 
State University in Our Common School System, 159 Ind. 139; Relocation 
of County Seat of Newton County, 161 Ind. 616; The Right of County 
x\ssessors in Quest of Taxable Property to Examine Bank Books, 166 Ind. 
631; Employers Liability Act, 171 Ind. 612; The County Option Law, 174 
Ind. 60; Railroad Commission no Power to Fix Rates that are Confiscator}^, 
172 Ind. 113. Careful and painstaking in everything, Judge Hadley's opin- 
ions, for their uniform, unvarying excellence of workmanship, were not ex- 
celled by those of any of his brother justices. The impression that he made 
on the limited circle of friends and neighbors in Hendricks and adjoining 
counties at the beginning and during the early years of his practice, was the 
one he left on the larger circle of his acquaintance after years of faithful and 
appreciated service on the highest legal tribunal of the state, namely, that he 
was a man who could be relied on and trusted in all things. 

On the 15th day of March, 1865, John V. Hadley was united in mar- 
riage to Mary J. Hill, who was born in Hendricks county, Indiana, on August 
13, 1844, the daughter of Samuel and Rebecca (Hornaday) Hill. Her 
parents were natives of North Carolina, who became pioneer settlers in 
Hendricks county, where the father followed farming. Mr. Hill died in 
May, 1896, in the ninety-first year of his age. Mrs. Rebecca Hill died in 
1863, of typhoid fever, at the age of fifty- four years. They were the parents 
of seven children, Oliver, Samira, William, John, Daniel, Mary and Eliza. 
Mrs. Hadley's paternal grandfather, Joseph Hill, who also was a native of 
North Carolina, came to Indiana in an early day, sometime after the death 
of his wife, and located in Parke county, where he spent the rest of his days, 
and died. He was a Quaker in his religious belief. He was the father of a 
large family, of whom the following names are remembered : William, John, 
Daniel, Clark and Julia. Mrs. Hadley's maternal grandfather, Lewis Horna- 
day, spent his entire life in North Carolina. He was the father of five chil- 
dren, Rebecca, Susan, Ruth, Hester and Simon. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 177 

To Judge and Mrs. Hadley have been born three children, namely: 
Kate B., Hugh H. and Walter G. Kate B. became the wife of W. W. 
Buchanan, of Evanston, Illinois, and they have three daughters, Dorothy, 
Mary J. and Katherine. Hugh H. Hadley, who is a successful lawyer in 
Chicago, with residence in Oak Park, Illinois, married Madge Silverthorne, of 
Wisconsin. Walter G. Hadley, who has charge of his father's farm, mar- 
ried Jennie Christie, and they have two daughters, Jane and Ann. 

Politically, Judge Hadley has been a life-long supporter of the Repub- 
lican party and has always kept in closest touch with public questions and 
issues. In 1868 he was elected to the state Senate, serving through three 
sessions. Aside from this office and his judicial preferment, the Judge has 
never held public positions. Fraternally, he is a member of the Free and 
Accepted Masons, belonging to the lodge at Danville, and also belongs to 
Jesse Ogden Post No. 164, Grand Army of the Republic, and to the Military 
Order of the Loyal Legion. Religiously, the Judge and Mrs. Hadley are 
members of the Christian church at Danville. 

Thus briefly have been outlined the leading facts in the career of one 
who has stamped the impress of his individuality on the community in which 
practically his entire life has been spent. As the day, with its morning of 
hope and promise, its noontide of activity and accomplishment, and its even- 
ing of completed and successful efforts, so has been the life of this honored 
man. Easily approached, obliging and straightforward in all the relations of 
life, his personal relations with his fellow men have ever been mutually pleas- 
ant and agreeable, and he has enjoyed to a marked degree their confidence 
and regard. A representative of one of the sterling old families of Hend- 
ricks county, Judge Hadley has added luster to the family name and has made 
a record of which his county may justly be proud. E. E. D. 



JOHN WATT WHYTE. 



The gentleman of whom the biographer now writes is widely known as 
one of the honored citizens of Hendricks county and for almost half a cen- 
tury has been a valued factor in the development of the same, prominently 
identified with the varied interests of his community. His well directed 
energies in the practical affairs of life and his sound judgment have demon- 
strated what may be accomplished by the man of energy and ambition. Born 
on a foreign soil. Mr. Whyte early demonstrated the sterling qualities of 
(12) 



178 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

citizenship possessed by him and his success in Hfe is due solely to his own 
innate manhood and unfailing energy and ambition along right lines. 

John Watt Whyte was born on October 14, 1846, at Paisley, Scotland, 
the son of George and Elizabeth (Watt) Whyte, both of whom were natives 
of that town and country. George Whyte came to America before the out- 
break of the Mexican war. He was a weaver by trade, being particularly 
expert in weaving coverlets, using of course the old-style hand loom. He 
followed his trade after coming to this country and after power looms came 
into use, practically eliminating the class of trade to which he had catered, 
he entered the large woolen mills of the east, operating the power looms. He 
was a veteran of the Mexican War, having received a wound while in ser\'ice. 
At the outbreak of the Civil War, he enlisted in Company F, Forty-third 
Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, being assigned to the Army of the 
Tennessee. He enlisted for three years, but served until the close of hostil- 
ities. He was living in Terre Haute, Indiana, at the time of his enlistment 
and entered the ranks from Sullivan county. He was never a resident of 
this county, and died at Louisville, Kentucky, in 1870. Elizabeth (Watt) 
Whyte, mother of the immediate subject of this sketch, followed her husband 
to America soon after he came over. She crossed in one of the slow sailing 
vessels of that time, leaving her family in the old country. After being here 
a short time, she returned for her children, coming back directly and bring- 
ing with her the subject of this sketch and her youngest child, George. Two 
other children, William and Jennie, had died in Scotland and George is also 
deceased, leaving the subject the sole remaining one of the family. Her 
death occurred at Terre Haute, Indiana, on October 10, 1856, the fall of the 
election of President Buchanan. 

On October 18, 1868, Mr. Whyte was united in marriage with Ann 
Eliza Jackson, daughter of James and Mary (Jackson) Jackson, the former 
of whom was a native of Putnam county, this state, and the latter a native of 
Kentucky, having been born on October 27, 181 6, the same year in which 
Indiana was admitted to the sisterhood of states. She departed this life 
July I. 1900, at the advanced age of eighty- four years. James Jackson lived 
for many years in Putnam county, where he followed the trade of a black- 
smith. He was considered unusually skilled in his trade and mechanics 
generally and many specimens of his work are still extant. He served 
throughout the war of the Rebellion, being identified with an Iowa regiment 
and his death occurred in a soldiers' home in the state of Michigan. They 
were the parents of six children, those beside Ann Eliza, wife of the subject, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 1 79 

being: Sarah (Mrs. McCoy) and John, deceased; James. Thomas and Will- 
iam, who are still living. 

Mr. and Mrs. Whyte have an interesting family of ten children, namely : 
Ida, deceased, who was the wife of Henry Lawson. She was the mother of 
three children. Urban, Eula and Ida Kate. Her death occurred March 8. 
1894. William, who married Blanche Pierson, resides in Muncie, Indiana, 
where he is employed in a garage. He is the father of one child, Mildred. 
George L., whose wife was Alice Leachman. is a farmer in this county and 
the father of one child, Joyce Roseland. Lenora married Elmer E. Brown 
and resides at Brownsburg in this county. She is the mother of one child, 
Doris. Mary became the wife ,of John C. Taylor, of Danville, and has one 
cliild. John W. 01i\'er resides at home. Lurene is Mrs. Fred Scearce. of 
Danville, and has one child, Maurice. Walter T. married Alice Anderson, 
of Knoxville, Tennessee, and has one child, Walter Allen. Raymond makes 
his home in Danville and Eunice, who became the wife of Lynn L. Bolinger, 
resides at Seymour, Indiana. Her husband was formerly a traveling sales- 
man, but has recently engaged in the grocery business. They are the parents 
of one child, Lynn Lewis. 

Mr. Whyte was quite a small child when his mother brought him from 
his native Scotland and in his earlier years was moved about considerably 
and finally became a "bound'' boy in Terre Haute, where he remained until 
twenty years of age, when he came to Danville on September 4, 1866. On 
October 15, 1864, he had volunteered for one year in Company M, Fourth 
Indiana Cavalry, and received his discharge, dated August 27, 1865, at In- 
dianapolis, having seen no active duty. Since coming to Hendricks county 
he has spent the rest of his life here with the exception of one year at La- 
fayette, this state. All his life he has been connected with agricultural pur- 
suits, although he has also worked at other trades. He was engaged in car- 
pentry for some time and for over eight years was in the tombstone business 
at Danville. He has done considerable trading and was first located on a 
farm about three miles southeast of Danville. He traded around some and 
for twenty years lived on a farm of one hundred and sixty acres about two 
miles north of Danville. From there he came to the farm known as the 
Bob McCoun farm, where he has resided for the past twelve years, carrying 
on general farming. He has about eighty acres at present, on which he has 
made all the improvements, clearing the land, draining it and putting up 
fences, so that the farm today is in an excellent state. 

Mr. Whyte's fraternal affiliation is with the Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows and he has served his local lodge as treasurer for seven years. He 



l80 HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 

is also a member of the local post at Danville of the Grand Armv of the 
Republic. Mr. Whyte is a stanch Republican and takes pride in the fact 
that he has always adhered to that party's ticket. His first vote was cast 
for General Grant as President. He takes an active interest in local politics 
and in 1892 was elected county commissioner, serving in that capacity for 
three years. During 1906 and 1907 he served as ditch commissioner and 
again in 1898 was elected county commissioner, serving another term of 
three years. In 1908 he was elected township trustee for a term of six years, 
assuming his ofifice on January i, 1909, so that he is the present incumbent 
of that office. In the discharge of the duties which have devolved upon him 
from time to time, Mr. Whyte has ever sought to be absolutely fair and im- 
partial in his judgment and faithful to his trust at all times. The fact that 
he is universally well spoken of and held in high esteem shows he has suc- 
ceeded in his endeavor. He is a good mixer, a most congenial companion 
and is regarded as a man of unswerving integrity, absolutely honest in all 
his dealings with his fellow men. His religious affiliation is with the Chris- 
tian church, of which he has been a member since 1867. Mrs. Whyte is 
also a member of the same church, having identified herself with same at the 
tender age of seventeen years. Both are sincerely interested in the progress 
of that church society, giving liberally of time and means toward its sup- 
port. Mr. Whyte is extremely liberal in all his views and his hand is active 
in advancing the welfare of the community in every way possible. A man 
of generous impulses and genial disposition, he readily makes friends and 
always retains them. Having gained by his earnest efforts and consecutive 
labor a competence for himself, he is ever ready to assist those struggling 
toward the same goal. Because of his unimpeachable career, in both private 
and public life, he is eminently entitled to representation in a work of the 
scope of the one at hand. 



JAMES A. DOWNARD. 



In placing the name of James A. Downard before the reader as one 
standing in the front rank of the enterprising men of affairs and a leader of 
the bar at Danville, Indiana, whose influence has tended to the upbuilding 
of the city of his residence and the advancement of the affairs of his native 
county of Hendricks, simple justice is done a biographical fact recognized 
throughout the community by those at all familiar with his historv and 
cognizant of the important part he has acted in the circles with which he has 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. l8l 

been identified. His career presents a notable example of those qualities of 
mind and character which overcome obstacles and win success, and his 
example is eminently worthy of imitation. 

James A. Downard, a prominent lawyer and abstracter of Danville, was 
born in New Winchester, Hendricks county, Indiana, November 15, 1855. 
His parents, David M. and Cassandra (Morgan) Downard, were both 
natives of this county. David Downard was a farmer and stock raiser and 
was regarded as a fine judge of stock. He was a large breeder of high 
grade stock of all kinds and was one of the most successful in this line in the 
county. He was the son of Judge James Downard, who was one of the 
first probate judges of the Hendricks county court. He was one of the four 
proprietors who laid out the town of Danville in 1825. Judge Downard 
came from Kentucky to Indiana, having Ijeen born in Pennsylvania and emi- 
grating to the Northwest territory about 181 1. A few years later he went 
to Kentucky, and in 1818 came to Indiana, first settling near Brooklyn, after- 
wards moving to Indianapolis and later on permanently settling in Plain- 
field, where his death occurred in 1846. Judge Downard married Elizabeth 
Curry in Pennsylvania, a descendant of a Scotch-Irish family who came 
from Ireland. Judge Downard and wife were the parents of ten children, 
David being the ninth in order of birth, and his death occurred on January 
2, 1892, his wife having passed away many years before, on May 17, 1880. 
Mr. and Mrs. David Downard were the parents of ten children: James A., 
the immediate subject of this sketch; Mrs. Martha Hammond, of Danville; 
Mrs. Mary J. Anderson, of Anderson, Indiana; Canada H., \\ho lives on the 
old home place near Hadley in this county; AVilliam, a merchant of East St. 
Louis, Missouri; Erie, deceased, who married Charles S. Hall, of Evans- 
ville, Indiana ; Oliver, of Lynn, Indiana ; Frank, of Danville, and two who 
died in infancy. 

James A. Downard received his education in the district schools and 
later spent one year at Butler Universit}^ and also took a course at Bryant 
& Stratton's Business University at Indianapolis. In 1877 he entered the 
law office of Cofer & Taylor to read law and one year later he was admitted 
to the practice of all courts in Indiana. In the same year he took up the 
abstract business and now has the finest set of abstract books in Hendricks 
county, and is recognized as an authority on land titles in the county. In 1882 
he formed a connection with the Union Central Life Insurance Company, of 
Cincinnati, Ohio, and has been their financial correspondent for this county 
since that time. He has carried on this threefold line of work since 1882, 



l82 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

namely, the practice of law, the abstract business and the insurance business. 
He has managed his business in such a way that he has acquired a very com- 
fortable competence and is regarded as one of the leading and substantial 
men of Danville. 

Mr. Downard was married May 22, 1884. to Maude L. Donaldson, the 
daughter of William H. and Araminta B. Donaldson, of Danville. Mr. 
Downard was for fourteen years on the town board of Danville, and during 
this period, from 1892 to 1906, he was instrumental in providing sidewalks, 
brick streets, electric lights, water works and a new high school building for 
the town. In recognition of his efficient service on the town board he was 
elected on the Republican ticket as county commissioner in 19 10. and re- 
nominated in 1912, but went down to defeat with the rest of his party ticket. 
As countv commissioner he has been one of the men responsible for the hand- 
some new court house in Danville. He has been the one to take the lead 
in the work and has been recognized as the most important man on the board 
by virtue of his past experience. He has been treasurer of the Citizens' 
Building, Savings & Loan Association since 1882, and during his long incum- 
bency the institution has never lost a cent or had to make a foreclosure. 

Fraternally, Mr. Downard is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, 
the Knights of Pythias, and, religiously, is identified with the Friends church. 
His career has indeed been a busy one and it has been as useful as busy. He 
and his wife move in the best social circles of Danville and are highly es- 
teemed wherever they are known. 



EDGAR W. SHIRLEY. 



Among the families of Hendricks county, Indiana, whose members have 
worthily discharged their duties to their fellows and their community, no 
family takes higher rank than the Shirleys, of whom several representatives 
are todav prominently identified with the business and social life of Danville. 
For many years members of this family have stood for all that is best in 
business, educational, moral or S(Kial life and ha\'e wielded an influence that 
has been potential in the development and welfare of their community, being 
numbered among the enterprising and progressive citizens of the county. 
Because of the prominence which the family has enjoyed and the close rela- 
tions they have sustained to the welfare and prosperity of the localitv which 
has been honored by their citizenships, they are eminently entitled to repre- 
sentation in a work of the character of the one in hand. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY^ INDIANA. 183 

One of the most prosperous business men of Danville, Indiana, is Edgar 
W. Shirley, the son of John M. and Susan (Hale) Shirley, who was born 
February lo, i860, in Pittsboro, in this county. His father was also a native 
of Hendricks county, his birth having occurred three miles southwest of 
Brownsburg on June 15, 1835. His mother was born about one and one-half 
miles southwest of Pittsboro. James W. Shirley, the grandfather of Edgar 
W., was born in 1803, in Kentucky, and came to Hendricks county. Indiana, 
in 1830, or before, settling on Big creek, where he lived until his death, 
which occurred in 1893. James W. Shirley married Deborah Pressley, and 
they reared a family of eight children, the father of Edgar W. being the third 
in order of birth. John Shirley spent his whole life in the county of his birth. 
In October, 1852, he removed to Pittsboro, where he lived until 1873, being 
engaged in the mercantile business in that place. He continued in this busi- 
ness until July 29, 1873. at which time he came to Danville and took charge of 
the mercantile establishment which he had bought some years before in that 
place. He continued in acti\'e business until his death, which occurred Octo- 
ber 14, 1913, and was one of the wealthiest and most successful business men 
who have ever lived in this county. He was married January 11, 1857, to 
Susan Hale, and to this union there were born two children, William J., who 
died in 1899, and Edgar W., the immediate subject of this sketch. John 
Shirley was a member of the Christian church and for many years was a trus- 
tee of that denomination. He was trustee of Middle township for several 
terms and was postmaster of Pittsboro for a number of years. After moving 
to Danville he held the office of trustee of Center township for two terms. 
He was a large landowner in Hendricks county, and one of its most solid and 
substantial citizens at the time of his death. 

Edgar W. Shirley was educated in the public schools of Pittsboro, con- 
cluded the common school courses in that town, and attended Butler Uni- 
versity, Indianapolis. Immediately after the termination of his college course, 
he entered the store of his father in Danville, and has remained there con- 
tinuously since that time. Upon his father's death in 1913, he succeeded him 
in the business firm of Shirley & Showalter. This firm has by its courteous 
treatment of its customers and stfict integrity in all their business dealings, not 
only gained the confidence of the people, but have built up a large and profit- 
able lousiness, being numbered among the enterprising and progressive business 
houses of this city. 

Mr. Shirley was married in 1908 to Bernice (Burk) Kendall, of Danville. 
Industry and proljity have been the chief factors of Mr. Shirley's steady ad- 
vance in business affairs and his position in the world is such as to reflect high 



184 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

credit upon himself and to add to the reputation of Danville as an important 
business center. In addition to his interests in the mercantile business, Mr. 
Shirley has large real estate holdings in the county. Fraternally, he is a 
member of the order of Free and Accepted Masons, having taken all the de- 
grees, including the thirty-second. In his politics, he has been affiliated with 
the Republican party, although he has never held any office. At the same 
time he takes an active interest in the political issues of the day. He helps 
all public enterprises and when the new Christian church was started in Dan- 
ville he donated three thousand five hundred dollars to its erection. By the 
exercise of sound business principles and by being energetic at all times Mr. 
Shirley has forged to the front and is today one of the most deserving business 
men of the county, where he is held in high esteem by all classes because of his 
honesty of purpose, his industry, courteous manner and public spirit. 



JOHN W. TROTTER. 



It is not an easy task to adequately describe the character of a man who 
has led an eminently active and busy life in connection with the great legal 
profession and who has stamped his individuality on the plane of definite 
accomplishment in one of the most exacting fields of human endeavor. 
Among the truly self-made and representative men of Hendricks county none 
ranks higher than the honorable gentleman whose name heads this sketch, 
who is a conspicuous figure in the civic life of the community. A man of 
tireless energy and indomitable courage, he has won and held the unquali- 
fied esteem of his fellow citizens. Although the law is his profession, he 
has won a high reputation as a real estate, insurance and business man. In 
fact, he has probably done more for the material advancement of Danville 
and Hendricks county than any other citizen. 

John W. Trotter, the son of James M. and Nancy E. (Crose) Trotter, 
was born in Hendricks county, Indiana, October 15, 1861. His parents' 
were both natives of this county and are still living in Danville. James M. 
Trotter was a farmer and stock raiser and was one of Hendricks county's 
most substantial agriculturists, but has been living retired in Danville for 
several years. Mr. and Mrs. James M. Trotter are both members of the 
Methodist Episcopal church and have been for the past forty years. They 
are the parents of six children, five of whom are still living : John W. ; 
Rose, the wife of George M. Thompson, of Lizton, this countv; James 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 185 

W., a farmer in Eel River township; Gretta, who died in 1893, at the age 
of twenty- four years; Mary C, the wife of Aaron Kinder, of Danville; 
Retta. the wife of Robert Davidson, of Detroit, Michigan. The Trotter 
family is of English lineage and came to America in the eighteenth century. 
The great-grandfather of the present John W. Trotter came from Vir- 
ginia to Indiana when he was only two years old, his parents settling in 
Eel River township, this county, on land which they entered from the govern- 
ment. James Trotter was the father of ten sons, all of whom settled in 
western states except three who stayed in Hendricks and adjoining coun- 
ties. These three were Anderson Trotter, of Jamestown, Boone county, 
Indiana; William Trotter, of North Salem, this county, and James, the 
grandfather of John W., the immediate subject of this sketch. James Trot- 
ter, in addition to being a very succesful farmer, was also the township 
trustee for several terms. 

John ^V. Trotter was reared on the home place, worked as a boy on 
his father's farm and has never known an' idle day since that time. He en- 
tered the Central Normal College, at Danville, at the age of seventeen, but 
after a few weeks he secured a license to teach and began his pedagogical ex- 
perience before he was eighteen years of age. He taught in the county 
schools and at North Salem, Lizton, Brownsburg and Danville. He re- 
signed the principalship at Lizton, after being there for three years, to take 
the principalship at Brownsburg. While teaching at the latter place, he was 
elected countv surveyor, being the youngest man ever elected to a county 
office in Hendricks county. Upon being elected to the office of county sur- 
vevor he moved to Danville in 1887, where he has continued to reside. He 
was elected to the office of surveyor five times in succession by majorities 
ranging from nine hundred and eighty-five to fourteen hundred and nine- 
teen. His long service in the surveyor's office made him a practical man in 
the abstract business, and upon retiring from the surveyor's office he bought 
a set of abstract books and in 1894 sold a half interest in the business to 
George T. Pattison, who had been a professor in the Central Normal Col- 
lege for several years. Messrs, Trotter and Pattison then studied law to- 
gether and were admitted to the bar, and for nine years, under the name of 
Trotter & Pattison, practiced law and conducted an abstract, real estate, loan 
and insurance business. During the past ten years Mr. Trotter has been alone 
in the business, doing a probate business and a large real estate and 
loan business, selling many thousand acres of v^restern land in North Dakota, 
Texas and other states. He also handles large real estate deals at home and 



l86 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

has platted and sold out many additions to towns and cities throughout the 
Central West. He has the largest loan business in the county, his loans 
amounting to three hundred thousand dollars a year. Besides making loans 
for corporations, he loans for one hundred and lifty private parties. He is 
financial correspondent for the Connecticut Mutual Life Insurance Company 
for this territory and inspects lands, examines titles, prepares all papers and 
closes the loans in his own office, making it possible in this way to close a 
loan on short notice. The companies which he represents are giving the 
cheapest money and on the bt-st terms of any company loaning money in 
Indiana. In addition to his loaning business, he does a large amount of in- 
surance business, having eleven of the best old-line fire insurance companies. 
He looks after his law, real estate, loan and insurance business and his 
farms and buildings with the aid of one office man, and he tries not to 
neglect the other things of life which he considers of importance. 

Mr. Trotter is now serving his fourth year as president of the Danville 
Commercial Club and has always devoted much of his time to its interests 
and the improvement of Danville. He is president of the Danville Canning 
Company and is a promoter and stockholder in the Danville Creamery. He 
is also president of the Danville South Cemetery Association, president of 
the board of stewards of the Danville Methodist Episcopal church, and vice- 
president and director of the Capitol Circuit Traction Company. It was in 
Mr. Trotter's office that the company was organized that built the interurban 
railroad from [ndianapolis to Danville, and he was a director and its secre- 
tary until it was sold to a Boston syndicate. He was the engineer, sur- 
veyor and superintendent of construction in full charge of the road when it 
was sold. He is now interested in two other roads, which he hopes to se. 
built before long 

Mr. Trotter, by native gift of what we call enterprise and diplomacy, 
and by hard work all the time from childhood, all through the years of his 
life, has developed an accuracy for details, a versatility in knowledge of 
business and al¥airs of small and large concern that make him a readv. a 
quick, a judicious and a decidedly big man in the business world. His ex- 
perience on the farm as a boy doing all kinds of farm work, his ten \'ears 
in the surveyor's office, his railroad building, his inspection of land for loans 
for many companies, his traveling in many states in the Union and in Mexico 
and Canada, have awakened in him a great interest in lands and farm prop- 
erty, and he deems it the safest and most stable in^•estment that can be 
made. He is now the owner of nearly eight hundred acres of land in Cen- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 187 

tral Indiana, which he is farming, besides about eighteen hundred acres 
of Texas and North Dakota land which he believes will soon develop into 
line farms, as the country in which these lands are located is rapidly de- 
veloping. He classes himself among the farmers and stock raisers of this 
country and makes a specialty of stock raising and general diversified farm- 
ing. Governor Marshall, recognizing his interests in agricultural affairs, 
appointed him as a delegate from this congressional district to the National 
Farm Land Congress, in Chicago, November i6 to 21, 1909. He has always 
been a progressive of progressives. When he bought the building known as 
the Trotter block, in Danville, he put an army of carpenters, masons, paint- 
ers, paper hangers, plumbers and electricians at work and remodeled and 
modernized the building until he had a three-story building that for comfort, 
convenience, beauty and desirability for modern offices and living rooms, 
would do credit to a city five times as large as Danville. 

Mr. Trotter was married to Mary E. Jeffers in 1887. and he gives a 
large share of the credit of his success in all his enterprises to her aid as an 
untiring worker at the practical affairs of life and to her encouragement. 
They have worked together through all these years as true helpmates and 
their home life has been ideal. Mr. Trotter has always taken an active in- 
terest in church affairs, and for fourteen years has been teacher of the largest 
Bible class in Hendricks county, teaching the normal class in which the 
students of Central Normal College, to the number of over two hundred, are 
enrolled yearly. These students are young men and women from every 
county in the state and from many other states, many being teachers in this 
and other states. He numbers his pupils in his class by thousands and re- 
gards this as his best work and productive of the most pleasure and profit. 
He was a Sunday school superintendent when only eighteen years of age 
at North Salem, and has been superintendent or assistant superintendent of 
the Danville Methodist Sunday school for twenty-three years. 

Fraternally, Mr. Trotter is a member of the Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows, to which order he has belonged for the past twenty-seven years, 
joining the Danville Silcox Lodge in 1887. He is also a member of the 
encampment and Rebekahs. Mr. Trotter is a man of vigorous mentality 
and strong mental fiber and finds these qualities the chief factors in the 
carving out of a career that has been above suspicion and reproach and of 
honor to the county which he so ably and acceptably serves as a public and 
private citizen. 



l88 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

TAVNER NEAL. 

One of the sterling citizens of Hendricks county, who is today filling 
an important position, is Tavner Neal, the efficient superintendent of the 
Hendricks county poor farm, who was born in Bourbon county, Kentucky. 
His parents were Charles W. and Emma S. (Bradley) Neal. 

Tavner Neal has been one of those self-made men who have risen to 
prominence solely because of their own industry and perseverance. When 
he was married he and his wife started to housekeeping in a log cabin, built 
at the northwest corner of his father's farm. This little square log cabin 
speaks eloquently of the early da}-s when they started their married life. 
They lived there for about two years, when they moved to their present home 
three and one-half miles southeast of Brownsburg, and there lived until 
March i, 1914. He then took his present position as superintendent of the 
count}^ poor farm. Starting out with nothing in life, he has accumulated 
a farm of one hundred and thirty-three acres in Lincoln township, and has 
taken a great deal of interest in the breeding of live stock of various kinds. 
He not only raises live stock but he has dealt largely in poultry. He raises 
pedigreed Jersey cattle, Berkshire hogs, and for several years has made a 
specialty of pure bred Barred Rock chickens. He is regarded as an expert 
chicken fancier and has taken many premiums at various fairs and exhibits in 
his county and other counties in the state. He is a member of the American 
Berkshire Record Association, and for the past twenty 3^ears has belonged to 
the American Poultry Association, as well as the American Barred Plymouth 
Rock Association. He is a progressive and well informed farmer and lec- 
tures frequently at farmers' institutes and has the honor of raising one hun- 
dred and six and one-half bushels of corn to the acre at a time when average 
crops in his community were about twelve bushels to the acre. When he 
came to his farm it was exhausted from consecutive cropping and in very 
poor condition. He has not only reclaimed his land, which was practically 
useless, but has conserved the food element in his soil. He knows, to begin 
with, that an ounce of fertilizer as a preventive against soil exhaustion is 
worth a pound of fertilizer for soil reclamation. On this basic principle he 
plans his crops and plants in rotation to the end that the continuous growth 
of one variety of crop on the same ground will not rob it of its plant food 
elements. Clover naturally follows corn, or some similar rotation, and the 
land remains fertile and only a minimum amount of fertilizer is required. 
Not many years ago land in Indiana in more than one part of the state was 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 189 

"corned" to death. Crop after crop of corn was planted until corn no longer 
thrived. Now it is rare indeed to find a farmer who plants corn in the same 
field twice in succession. He insists that at least one crop of some other 
farm produce must intervene between two corn plantings. 

In 18S5 Mr. Neal was married to Annie Turpin, the daughter of Ander- 
son and Eveline (Reupert) Turpin, of Kentucky. Anderson Turpin was 
born in Bourbon county, Kentucky, the son of Robison and Rachel (Powell) 
Turpin Rol^ison Turpin was the son of Jacob and Martha Turpin, and his 
birth occurred in Bourbon county, Kentucky, on April 7, 1805, and in 1820 
he moved to Scott county, in that state. In 1834, Robison Turpin sold his 
farm in Kentucky and moved to Indiana, where he bought two hundred and 
five acres of land in the eastern edge of Hendricks county, near Brownsburg. 

The Turpin family trace their ancestry back as far as Jacob Turpin, 
who was born in eastern Maryland in 1785, the son of William and Nancy 
(Henley) Turpin, who were married in Maryland in 1783. Jacob Turpin's 
grandfather was a soldier in the Revolutionary War and lived until he was 
more than one hundred years old. In 1786 William and Nancy Turpin 
moved to Kentucky and settled among the hostile Indians, and were com- 
pelled to live in block houses with other settlers in order to protect themselves 
from the Indians. Jacob Turpin married Martha Taylor in Bourbon county, 
Kentucky, in 1804, she being born in that county in 1786, of Scotch parent- 
age. In 1820 they moved to Scott county, that state, and bought a farm 
and in the same year sold it and moved to Indianapolis when it was a town 
of seven hundred people. In 1829 Jacob Turpin and his wife moved to 
Hendricks county, settling near Clermont, where there was a cabin, log stable 
and five or six acres already partly cleared. Jacob Turpin died in 1849 and 
his Avife in 1865. They had one son, Robison Turpin, born in 1805, in 
Bourbon county, Kentuck}-, who was married in 1827 to Rachel Powell, also 
a native of Kentucky, her birth having occurred there in 1807. Robison 
Turpin was engaged in farming in that state until 1834, when he sold out his 
holdings in Kentucky and came to Indiana, purchasing two hundred and five 
acres of land in Hendricks county, where he became one of the most prosper- 
ous and successful farmers of that day. He was a man of excellent business 
ability and judgment and when his death occurred on January 30, 1905, he 
was sincerely mourned by his community, having won the esteem and con- 
fidence of all by his straightforward and honorable life. Robison Turpin 
and wife were the parents of ten children, Anderson, the father of Mrs. Neal, 
being the third child. Anderson Turpin was born in Scott county, Ken- 



190 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

tucky, on October 2, 1831, and came with his parents to Indiana in 1834. He 
was married to Louisa Evehne Reiipert. who was a native of Georgetown. 
Kentucky, her birth having occurred there in 1835. Anderson Turpin lived 
and died a farmer, passing away at Brownsburg, this county, in 1905. His 
wife lived until May, 19 13. 

Mr. Neal lends his hearty support to the Democratic party, and has 
been very active in the affairs of that political organization. He and the 
members of his family are faithful attendants of the Methodist Episcopal 
church and lend to it their zealous support. They are the parents of two 
children, Chester and Bertha. Chester married Grace Phillips and lives near 
his father's old home south of Brownsburg, and has one son, Marley. Bertha 
is still at home with her parents. 

In his fraternal relations Mr. Neal has long been a member of the Inde- 
pendent Order of Odd Fellows and the Tribe of Ben-Hur. He is a man 
who has always been a hard worker and is highly esteemed by his neighbors 
because he has been a busy man. Judged by his labors, none ha\'e done more 
to advance the material interests of his section of the county, and as a citizen 
no one stands higher in the esteem and confidence of the people of Hendricks 
countv. 



CHARLES E. EDWARDS. 

It is the progressive, wide-awake man of affairs who makes the real 
history of a commvmity and his influence as a potential factor of the body 
politic is difficult to estimate. The example such men furnish of patient 
purpose and steadfast integrity only illustrate what is in the power of each 
to accomplish, and there is always a full measure of satisfaction in advert- 
ing even in a casual way to their achievements in advancing the interests of 
their fellow men, and in giving strength and solidity to the institutions which 
make so much for the prosperity of the community. Such a man is the 
worthy subject of this sketch, and as such it is proper that his career be 
accorded a place among the representative citizens of the county in which he 
has lived for so many years. As a merchant and as a county official he has 
made his mark in the community and in the county where he has lived as a 
man of more than ordinary ability, and it is believed that a study of the life 
of such a man by the youth of the county will be an inspiration which will 
help them in their future careers. 

Charles E. Edwards, the present county clerk of Hendricks county, was 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. I9I 

born August 29, 1871, on a farm in Clay township, between Amo and Coates- 
ville. His parents were Solomon D. and Mary (Hornaday) Edwards, his 
father being a native of this county, and his mother a native of Morgan 
county, this state. Solomon Edwards is still living on the old home 
farm in Clay township, where he and his wife lived the simple lives of farm- 
ers all their lives. They are the parents of six children, all of whom are 
living: Minnie B., the wife of William O. Brown, of Clay township; Roscoe, 
a farmer of Clay township, who married Bertha Kendall; Charles E., the 
immediate subject of this sketch; Myrtle, the wife of Walter Hodgson, a 
farmer of Clay township; Maude L., the wife of Virley Moon, a rural route 
carrier out of Amo; John A., who is a merchant in Danville, who married 
Mary Wills. The mother of these children was called to rest April 13, 19 14. 
She was a good Christran and lived a life above reproach, and no mother 
could have been more kind and loving. Her thoughts were always of others 
and self was forgotten. Quiet and retiring in manner, yet she exerted a 
potent influence for good over those with whom her life was spent. 

Charles Edwards spent his boyhood days in the manner which is cus- 
tomary with all farmers' lads, attending school in the winter months, and 
working on the farm during the summer months. He attended the country 
schools until he reached the eighth grade and then took the last year of his 
common school course in the graded schools at Coatesville. ^Vith the idea of 
preparing himself for the teaching profession, he attended the State Normal 
School at Terre Haute in the spring of 1890. Following this he taught for 
three years in the Coatesville schools, where he made a successful record as an 
instructor. He afterwards took some work in the Central Normal College at 
Danville. However, the call of business was not to be denied and he engaged 
in the mercantile business at Coatesville in his father-in-law's store, and upon 
the death of his father-in-law, became the manager of the store. Subse- 
quently he became interested in the milling company at Coatesville and man- 
aged this plant for one and one-half years, at the expiration of which time 
he sold it out and bought a grocery and queensware business in Danville, 
which he conducted for ten years. Upon his election as county clerk in 19 10, 
he sold his store and became interested w^th Otis E. Gully in the real estate 
and loan business. He was elected county clerk of Hendricks county in 
November, 19 10, on the Republican ticket, with a handsome majority at a 
time when part of his ticket was defeated. In the conduct of the affairs of 
his office, which he assumed on July 27, 1912, he has proved himself an able 
and efficient administrator of the public's affairs and is making an enviable 



192 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

record as one of the most popular officials who have ever held office in 
Hendricks county. 

Mr. Edwards was married December 23, 1894, to Ida A. Job, the eldest 
daughter of Allen and Nettie Job, of Coatesville. Her father was one of the 
leading merchants in that part of the county. To this union have been born 
two daughters: Pauline, who is now sixteen years of age and a junior in the 
high school at Danxille, and Alary Jeannette, who is thirteen years of age and 
completing her common school work this year. Mr. Edwards and all the 
members of his family are consistent and loyal adherents of the Methodist 
Episcopal church. Mr. Edwards has been a member of the board of stewards 
of this denomination for many years. Fraternally, he is a member of the 
Knights of Pythias and Silcox Lodge of the Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows. 

Mr. Edwards is interested in the real estate and loan business wnth Otis 
E. Gulley under the firm name of Gulley & Edwards and also has land interests 
scattered throughout the county. He was a member of the Danville school 
board for five years and resigned that position when he became county 
clerk. Mr. Edwards is a man of splendid business qualifications, which, com- 
bined with his courtesy, genial disposition and unfailing good nature, have 
commended him to the good will and friendship of all who know him. His 
life is the record of a well balanced mental and moral constitution. In all of 
life's relations he has been true and faithful to himself and all the trusts 
reposed in him and thereby he has w^on the unqualified confidence and 
respect of his fellow men. 



EVERETT ROSCOE ROBARDS. 

It is a well attested maxim that the greatness of a community or a 
state lies not in the machinery of government, nor even in its institutions. 
but rather in the sterling qualities of the individual citizen, in his capacity 
for high and unselfish effort and his devotion to the public welfare. In these 
particulars he whose name appears at the head of this review has conferred 
honor and dignit}' upon his locality, and as an elemental part of history it is 
consonant that there should be recorded a resume of his career, with the 
object in view of noting his connection with the advancement of one of the 
most flourishing and progressive sections of the commonwealth, as well as 
his official relations with the administration of the public affairs of the county 
honored by his citizenship. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. I93 

Everett R. Robards, banker, merchant, farmer and stock breeder of 
Stilesville, was born in that place on November 17, 1865, the son of Casper 
and Mary EHzabeth (Matlock) Robards, the father a native of Owen county, 
Indiana, his birth having occurred on September i, 1830, and his mother a 
native of StilesN^ille, ha\-ing been born there in 1843. Casper Robards was 
deputy treasurer of Morgan county. Indiana, from 1850 to 1855, and' in 
1856 established the first drug store in Stilesville. In i860 he sold his drug 
store and engaged in the general merchandising business, which he continued 
until 1873, when his health failed and he sold out his mercantile business in 
that year. However, he continued to live in Stilesville until his death, which 
occurred on May 8, 1902. His wife, Mary E. Matlock, the daughter of 
James and Sarah Matlock, was only twenty-three years of age when her 
death occurred, leaving three small children: James, who died in 1864; Sarah 
Caroline, who died in 1865, and Everett R., the immediate subject of this 
sketch. 

Everett R. Robards attended the common schools of Hendricks county 
and later took the two-years course then offered by the normal school at 
Danville. After leaving school he engaged in a general merchandising 
business in Stilesville and in 1899 he opened a private bank, which has 
proved to be very successful. As a business man Mr. Robards has won 
signal success along several different lines. As a banker he has been conduct- 
ing a bank which has won the confidence of a large number of patrons. His 
well-stocked store in Stilesville is managed in such a way as to reflect great 
credit upon the owner. In addition to his banking and mercantile interests 
Mr. Robards also has farm lands in Hendricks, Morgan, Marion, Putnam and 
Scott counties, this state, and personally oversees all of them. Upon his farm in 
Hendricks county he breeds heavy draft horses, for which he finds a ready 
sale. In addition to all of these manifold duties, he has been the efficient 
trustee of Eranklin township and has also served a term on the count v council 
of Hendricks count}'. In every undertaking he has proven that close at- 
tention to business is sure to win success, w^hen accompanied with strict in- 
tegrity and high purposes. 

Mr. Robards was married to Addie A. A]mond, the daughter of Hiram 
and Angeline (Ellis) Almond, on November 29, 1899, and to this union 
there have been born two children, Mary Elizabeth and Everett Almond. 
Mrs. Robards was one of four children, the other three being Orville, who 
married Daisv Howard; Etta, who married K. E. Faucette, and they have 
(13) 



194 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

one child, Warner; and Ethel, who married W. R. Robertson, and they have 
two children. James and Russell. 

Mr. Robards was formerly a Republican, but in the split which occurred 
in that party in 191 2 he espoused the Progressive cause, believing that in this 
new party there were better hopes for the future. He has always taken an 
active interest in the political issues of the day and even sacrificed his per- 
sonal affairs in order to serve his party in office. Fraternally, he is a mem- 
ber of the Free and Accepted Masons, belonging to Larrabee Lodge, No. 
131. He and the members of his family are adherents of the Christian 
church of Stilesville and contribute generously ,to its support. The life 
which Mr. Robards has led has indeed been a busy one, but through it all 
he has kept his self respect and the tongue of censure has never had any 
charges to bring against him. His clean life and the honorable methods 
which he has used all these years in transacting his business affairs, have won 
for him a host of friends throughout the county. 



GEORGE A. KEENEY. 



Indiana has been especially honored in the character and career of her 
men of industry. In every section have been found men born to leadership 
in their vocation, men who have dominated because of their superior intelli- 
gence, natural endowment and force of character. It is always profitable 
to study such lives, weigh their motives and hold up their achievements as 
incentives to greater activity and higher excellence on the part of others. 
These reflections are suggested by the career of one who has forged his way 
to the front rank and who, by strong, inherent force and marked business 
ability, directed and controlled by an intelligent judgment, has stood for the 
last five years as one of the leading business men of Danville, Indiana. 

Thrown early upon his own resources, George A. Keeney set out with 
the avowed determination of securing an education and how well he has suc- 
ceeded is shown in the brief sketch which follows. Through the common 
school, through the high scho(5l, through the normal, through the state uni- 
versity he worked his way, and through it all he was the same simple man 
we find him today. Although he has seen disappointments and many discour- 
agements, yet his optimistic nature has always been to the front and this 
happy characteristic has made it possible for him to win the success which 
is so worthily his today. It is not often that the theoretical college man and 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. I95 

professor can go into the business world and make a success, and yet this 
is what Mr. Keeney has been able to do. The study of the career of such a 
man as this should be an inspiration to the young men who have to make 
their way in the world. 

George A. Keeney, of the hardware and implement concern known as 
The Danville Hardware Company, was born on a farm at Rainstown, Hen- 
dricks county, Indiana. June 28. 1877. His childhood, youth and young man- 
hood were spent in active work on the farm, which is the best school for 
practical knowledge for the young. There the boy, consciously or uncon- 
sciously, is a student of soil, climate, kinds of seed to be planted and methods 
of planting and harvesting, of the kinds of stock to be kept and cared for and 
used or raised for market. Mr. Keeney is naturally inclined to be a student 
of men and things and men's affairs, and his ambition to learn had ample 
vent in the study of the book of nature on the farm. Ambitious to train his 
mind and learn of history and science, he began early to inform himself from 
books as well as from nature. He was fortunate in being thrown upon his 
own resources and arose to the occasion by making his own way. He gained 
a much better education from the school than the average man because he 
worked for it. He earned money at whatever he could find to do, and 
worked his way through the high school two terms in Central Normal Col- 
lege and a four-year course in the Indiana State Normal and finally gradu- 
ated from that institution. He then took two years at Indiana State Uni- 
versity, graduating with the Bachelor of Arts degree, after which he took 
a term in the great Chicago University. He taught school for eight years, 
four years of this time in the country schools during his college life in order 
to earn money to pay his way. He was superintendent of the schools, one 
year at Pittsboro, one year at Clayton, and two years at North Salem, where 
he had seven subordinate teachers. 

He had a head for business, and accumulated money as a teacher, a 
thing that is done by too few of that worthy profession. In 1909 he bought 
a half interest in what was then the Leak & Keeney hardware business at 
Danville and has been a student of that business since. His training has 
made it easy and the natural thing for him to devote energy to the business 
in hand. For him it is the natural thing to know the best and most, modern 
in the varied and comprehensive lines of goods their large store carries, so 
that they can meet the demand for the tools and implements the farmer and 
builder use. His business and the needs and convenience of his customers is 
his study, and how he may serve them is his pleasure. 



196 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Mr. Keeney was married to Eldora Nelson, on September 30, 1906, and 
to her influence as a true helpmate Mr. Keeney ascribes any success that he 
has won. She was born in Jackson township, Boone county, Indiana, a 
daughter of Thomas J. and Alice Nelson. When she was a small child her 
mother died and she was reared to womanhood in the home of her uncle, 
George L. Leak, near Lizton. She attended high school at Lizton and at 
Lebanon ; graduated from the teachers' course at the Central Normal Col- 
lege, and took about two years at the State Normal at Terre Haute. She 
also taught eight years in the public schools of this county, most of the time 
at Lizton. 

Mr. Keeney is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and 
of Danville Commercial Club. Progress, intelligent organization and unity 
of work by public spirited men for the public good, he promotes with his 
voice and work. His progressive ideas as a business man and as a citizen, 
and his genial nature, make him popular as a business man. 



M. S. MAHAN. 



The men most influential in promoting the advancement of society and 
in giving character to the times in which they live are two classes, to-wit, the 
men of study and the men of action. Whether we are more indebted for the 
improvement of the age to the one class or the oth^r is a question of honest 
difference in opinion; neither class can be spared and both should be encour- 
aged to occupy their several spheres of labor and influence, zealously and 
without mutual distrust. In the follow^ing paragraphs are briefly outlined the 
leading facts and characteristics in the career of a gentleman who combines 
in his make-up the elements of the scholar and the energy of the public-spir- 
ited man of affairs. Devoted to the noble and humane work of teaching, he 
has made his influence felt in the school life of Hendricks county, and is not 
unknown to the wider educational circles of the state, occupying as he does a 
prominent place in his profession and standing high in the esteem of educators 
in other than his own particular field of endeavor. 

Professor M. S. Mahan, the present efficient superintendent of the Dan- 
ville schools, was born in Sullivan county, Indiana, May 25, 1872. His par- 
ents were William and Emily (Phillips) Mahan, his father being a native of 
Kentucky and his mother of Indiana. His father followed the occupation of 
a farmer all his life, his death occurring in 1897, his wife having preceded 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. I97 

him in death several years previous, in 1888. Mr. and Mrs. WilHam Mahan 
were the parents of seven children, three of whom are living : Samuel, of 
Terre Haute; William, who is living on the home farm, and Professor M. S. 
Mahan, the immediate subject of this sketch. 

Professor Mahan is an excellent type of the man who devotes all of his 
time and energy to the noble profession of instructing the youth. Since he 
was six years of age there has not been a year in which he was not in the 
school room either as a student, or as an instructor of students. He received 
his elementary education in the district schools of his home county and then 
entered the graded school at Farmersburg, where he continued for two years. 
After one year's service as a country school teacher he came to the Central 
Normal College at Danville, where he remained for three years. This was 
followed by two years of successful teaching in Henry county in this state. 
The next two years found him in charge of a school in Hardinsburg, Wash- 
ington county. Indiana. From here he went to Pleasantville, Sullivan county, 
this state, where he was principal of the schools for one year. He then lived 
at Orleans for the following six years, two of which were spent as principal 
of the schools, and. four years as superintendent. He then went to the State 
University at Bloomington. where he remained in continuous residence until 
his graduation in June, 1907, with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. After his 
graduation from the university he was elected superintendent of the schools 
at Danville. Indiana, and has been in charge of these schools continuously 
since. Since taking charge of the schools in Danville he has practically revo- 
lutionized the course of study. He has added courses in domestic science, 
commercial work and manual training, and has seen the attendance nearly 
doubled. There are now two hundred and seventy pupils in the grades and 
one hundred and forty-five in the high school. All of the high school teachers 
but one are college graduates. He has also introduced a department of agri- 
culture in order to meet the demand for this kind of work. In fact, the at- 
tendance has grown to such an extent that the present buildings are wholly 
inadequate to accommodate the pupils. It is interesting to note that, he has 
brought about the changes in the courses^ of study without increasing the tax 
levy in Danville, a fact which should call for special mention. This has been 
made possible by the hearty co-operation of the town and Central Normal 
College in the employment of teachers for special courses. It is safe to say 
that no schools in the state have made as rapid or more efficient progress 
within the last three years than have the schools of Danville, and it is all due 
to the wise administration of Professor Mahan. 

Mr. Mahan was married to Gertrude Webb, at Orleans. Indiana. No- 



198 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

veniber 26, 1902, and to this marriage there have been born two children, 
Margaret and Dwight, the latter deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Mahan are mem- 
bers of the ^Methodist Episcopal church, and he is a member of its official 
board. They both take an active part in church work and Professor Mahan 
is the teacher of the Bible class in his church. 

Fraternally, Mr. Mahan is a member of the Free and Accepted. ^lasons. 
He is a member of the National Educational Association, the Indiana State 
Teachers' Association and the various local organizations pertaining to edu- 
cational subjects. He is the present vice-president of the Indiana State Teach- 
ers' Association. Professor Mahan is a well educated, splendidly developed 
man and his work as an educator has for many years been of such a high 
standard of excellence that his position in the front rank of his profession is 
universally conceded. He keeps abreast of the times in advanced educational 
methods and is in hearty sympathy with the practical education which is de- 
manded by the times. His influence for good in the community of Danville 
is incalculable and the work which he is doing cjuietly and unostentatiously 
makes him one of the most potent forces for good in the city of Danville. 



JOHN S. DUCKWORTH. 



It is proper to judge of a man's success in life by the estimation in which 
he is held by his fellow citizens. They see him at work, in the family circle, 
in church, hear his views on public questions, observe the operation of his code 
of morals, witness how he conducts himself in all the relations of society and 
civilization, and are therefore competent to judge of his merits and demerits. 
After a long course of years of such daily observation, it would be out of the 
question for his neighbors not to know of his worth, for, as has been said, 
"actions speak louder than words." In this connection it is not too much to 
say that the subject of this sketch has passed a life of unusual honor, that he 
has been industrious and has the confidence of all who have the pleasure of 
his friendship. 

John S. Duckworth, the present county recorder of Hendricks county, 
Indiana, was born in North Salem, Eel River township, this county, on March 
6, 1858. His parents were Pressley S. and Eliza (Woodward) Duckworth, 
his father being a native of Kentucky and his mother of this county. Pressley 
Duckworth was a farmer by occupation and came to Hendricks county about 
1850 w itli his widowed mother, and settled one mile north of North Salem, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. I99 

where he lived all of his life, his death occurring on April 13, 1872. His 
widow still survives him, and makes her home in North Salem. To Mr. and 
Mrs. Pressley Duckworth were born eight children : John S., the immediate 
subject of this sketch; Oliver E'., of Jamestown, Indiana; James A., St. Louis; 
Mollie, deceased ; Allie, deceased ; Mrs. Maggie Ergenbright, of Kansas City ; 
William, of North Salem, and Lizzie, deceased. 

John S. Duckworth was educated in the common schools of his home 
neighborhood and remained under the parental roof until he had attained his 
majority. In 1873, he went to work in a saw mill and followed this occupa- 
tion for tw^enty years. Following this he engaged in teaming and farming 
until his election as county recorder of Hendricks county in November, 1906. 
His record during his first term of office was such that he was nominated for 
re-election and although he had three candidates against him he carried every 
towaiship in the county but two and had a majority of more than five hundred. 
He has taken especial care to have all the records in his office bound and pre- 
served and kept in the most approved manner. He is distinctly a man of the 
people, a man who has very little education, but who has that happy faculty 
of being able to make the very most of all of his possibilities. He is a hard 
worker and deservedly popular with all classes of people. 

John S. Duckw^orth was married October 23, 1883, to Nannie O'Rear, the 
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Newton O'Rear, of Boone county, Indiana. To 
this union there have been born six children: Mabel C, deceased; Fred 
Allen, railroad employe at Indianapolis ; George P., who lives in the West ; Lela 
and Beulah, twins. Beulah is the wife of Carl White, of Jamestown, and 
Lela keeps house for her father, and has been his constant companion since 
her mother's death, August 10, 1897; Kenneth, the sixth and last child, died 
in infancy. 

Mr. Duckworth has ahvays been a Republican in politics, and has been 
one of the most active men in the councils of his party for many years. His 
re-election to the office of county recorder show-s the high esteem in which he 
is held by the citizens of his county. Fraternally, he is a member of the Free 
and Accepted Masons and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He holds 
membership in the Methodist Episcopal church of North Salem, and is a lib- 
eral contributor to its various needs. Personally, Mr. Duckworth is a man 
whom it is a pleasure to know, being generous-hearted, kind and helpful. He 
is honest in all his dealings with his fellow men and eminently worthy of rep- 
resentation in a w'ork of this character, as he is one of Hendricks county's 
most valued citizens. 



200 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

GEORGE W. SCEARCE. 

The Union soldier during the great war between the states builded wiser 
than he knew. Through four years of suftering and v/asting hardships, 
through the horrors of prison pens and amid the shadows of death, he laid 
the superstructure of the greatest temple ever erected and dedicated to hu- 
man freedom. The world looked on and called those soldiers sublime, for 
it was theirs to reach out and strike the chains from off the slave, preserve 
the country from dissolution, and to keep unfurled to the breeze the only flag 
that ever made tyrants tremble and whose majestic stripes and scintillating 
stars are still waving universal liberty to all the earth. For all these un- 
measured deeds the living present can never repay them. Pensions and polit- 
ical power may be thrown at their feet; art and sculpture may preserve 
upon canvas and in granite and bronze their unselfish deeds ; history may 
commit to books and cold type may give to the future the tale of their suf- 
ferings and triumphs; but to the children of the generations yet unl)orn will 
it remain to accord the full measure of appreciation and undying remem- 
brance of the immortal character carved out by the American soldiers in 
the dark days of the early sixties, numbered among whom was the gentle- 
man whose name appears at the head of this sketch. 

Among the most highly respected citizens of Hendricks county, Indiana, 
is George W. Scearce, who was born in Shelby county, Kentucky, March 
19, 1843. His parents were Ezra W., born in 1808, and Martha (Shepherd) 
Scearce, born in 1809, both of whom were natives of Kentucky. Ezra W. 
Scearce was a farmer and came to Indiana in March, 185 1, locating a half 
mile southwest of Danville, where he lived until his death, which occurred 
March 30, 1885. Ezra Scearce was a great student of the Bible, a consis- 
tent member of the Universalist church, and was a man of high ideals and 
of a philosophic bent of mind. Mr. and Mrs. Ezra Scearce were the parents 
of seven children, only one of whom is living, George W. The six deceased 
children are James, Elizabeth, John N., Johanna K., William W. and Curtis. 

George W. Scearce spent his boyhood on his father's farm and received 
the education which was accorded to the children of his county in the period 
before the Civil War, which amounted to onlv a few months during the win- 
ter, and consisted of reading, writing and arithmetic. At an age when most 
of the boys of the present time are 'in high school, he left school to enter 
the army. When the war broke out he was only eighteen years of age, but 
his youth did not interfere with his plans for serving his country. At the 




GEORGE W. SCEARCE 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 20I 

Opening of the war he enHsted in Company K, Fifty-first Regiment Indiana 
Volunteers, and served three years and two months. During that time he 
was in thirty-one engagements, among the most famous battles in which 
he took part being Shiloh, Stone's River, Perryville, Franklin and Nashville. 
At the battle of Nashville, on December i6, 1864, he received a gunshot 
wound in his left hip. He was a prisoner of war for a short time, and was 
confined at Belle Isle, in the James river, near Richmond, Virginia. During 
part of his service his regiment was attached to General Streight's brigade 
and detailed to do field duty in destroying munitions of war and lines of 
communication. His brother, William W., was also a soldier in the war and 
was made a prisoner, being confined in the infamous Libby prison. He, in 
company with three others, escaped from this in the tunnel which has been 
made famous in history and successfully reached the Union lines. George 
W. Scearce was mustered in as a private, but was promoted to second lieu- 
tenant and from June 19, 1863, until the close of the war he held the rank 
of captain, being promoted to that rank vv'hen he was twenty years of age. 

Upon being mustered out of service Mr. Scearce returned to his 
father",'-- farm in tiendricks county, Indiana. On December 7, 1865, he was 
united in marriage to Sophia Chamberlin, who was a native of Madison, 
Indiana, and to this union were born five children: Harry C.. of Moores- 
ville, Indiana; Edwin A., a farmer living near Danville, this county; Martha 
L. ; Bertha E., and Grace K., wife of C. V. Cook, assistant cashier of the 
First National Bank, of Danville. After his marriage Mr. Scearce took 
charge of the old homestead farm, where he lived until 1911, when he moved 
to Danville. Previous to leaving the farm for the city of Danville, he built 
a fine modern home in this city, where he now lives a retired life, sur- 
rounded by all modern conveniences and comforts. He has been a resident 
of Hendricks county for sixty-three years, having arrived in this county 
on the day he was eight years of age, and has lived to see the little village 
of Danville grow to become the flourishing little city which it is today. 

Politically, Mr. Scearce is a life-long Republican and has always been 
more or less interested in politics. During the eighties he served as trustee 
of Center township and rendered faithful and efficient service to his fellow 
citizens during that time. He assisted in organizing the Farmers Co-opera- 
tive Insurance Company, of Hendricks county, and was its secretary-treasurer 
for fifteen years. For the past twenty years he has been president of this 
insurance company, and is now acting in that capacity. He has the honor 
of being the oldest Odd Fellow in Danville in point of continuous member- 



202 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ship, having joined the lodge in 1864, when he was home from the war on 
a furlough. He is also a loyal member of the Grand Army of the Republic 
and takes an active interest in the affairs of the post in Danville. His re- 
ligious affiliations are with the Methodist Episcopal church, of which he has 
been a trustee and a member of the board of stewards for many years. He 
has always been a strong advocate of temperance, and in all the move- 
ments of his county which have had for their object the extermination of the 
liquor traffic he has always taken an active part. He was president of the 
organization at Danville which routed the saloons from that city. Though 
past the psalmist's allotted span of years, Mr. Scearce still retains to a re- 
markable extent his physical and mental vigor and takes a deep interest in 
all the current affairs of the community, being numbered among the enter- 
prising men of this section of the state. He has worked hard and accom- 
plished much, and because of his past efforts he is thoroughly entitled to rep- 
resentation in a work of the character of the one in hand. 



SYLVANUS MABE. 



Indiana was not lacking in loyalty during the dark days of the Rebellion, 
and no governor in all the northern states was more prompt or rendered more 
efficient service to President Lincoln than did Governor Morton. When the 
ship of state was almost stranded on the rocks of disunion, Indiana came to 
the front and contributed over two hundred thousand brave and valiant men 
to assist in preserving the integrity of the government. Prominent among 
the citizens of Hendricks county who served their country faithfully and well 
were Sylvanus Mabe and his father, James M. Mabe. Although they en- 
listed from Brown county, this state, they have made their home in Hendricks 
county for many years, the father having answered the last roll call several 
years ago. Today there is in Hendricks county no old soldier who is more 
widely and favorably known and none that can boast of a more honorable 
record than Sylvanus Mabe. He was loyal to his countr}' in its hour of peril 
and extremity, and demonstrated on many a blood}- battle field that he was 
ready to fight and even die for his country. 

Sylvanus Mabe, the son of James M. and Anna (Noblet) Mabe, was born 
in Brown county, Indiana. May 31, 1844. James M. Mabe was born October 
23, 1820, in Stokes county. North Carolina, and died March 5. 1896, in 
Hendricks county, Indiana. He was one of six children, the others being 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 203 

Bettie, Mrs. Mary Williamson, Mrs. Ruth Clark, William F., and Mrs. Nancy 
Medlock. When James M. Mabe was about ten years of age he moved with 
his parents to Brown county. Indiana, where he and his father entered land 
from the government. He never had any schooling except what he picked up 
in the wide field of experience, since he never had any opportunity of attend- 
ing a school in Brown county while he was a lad. Sylvanus Mabe and his 
father, with their families, lived in Brown county until 1892, when they moved 
to Hendricks county. James M. INIabe enlisted in Company H, of the Eighty- 
second Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and served from the date of 
his enlistment, September 18, 1862, until the close of the war. He was pres- 
ent at the Grand Review at Washinglon, D. C, in the spring of 1865. His 
son, Sylvanus, also enlisted, serving from August 20, 1861, until about the 
close of the war. He was only seventeen years of age when he enlisted in 
Company C, of the Sixth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, which was 
made a part of the Army of the Cumberland. He was engaged in the battle 
of Shiloh, the seige of Corinth and all of those engagements which were 
fought by Grant in Tennessee and Mississippi. His regiment was later 
transferred to the eastern part of Tennessee, where he fought in the battles 
of Chickamauga, Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge, and in the last 
named battle he was wounded, being struck by pieces of shell in the right 
knee, incapacitated from further service and within the next six months he 
was mustered out at Indianapolis. 

James M. and Anna (Noblet) Mabe reared a large family of thirteen 
children: Sylvanus; Hiram, who died at the age of twenty-six; V^andever, 
deceased xA.pril 13, 1909, a member of Company D, Forty-third Indiana Vol- 
unteer Infantry, married Jeannette Anthony; \\'illiam ; Williamson, de- 
ceased ; Levi; who died when small ; Cyrus, deceased ; Mary Jane, the wife 
of A. D. Handcher; Alargaret, the wife of Oliver Craig; James, deceased; 
David, who married Etta Gates, and two who died in infancy. 

Sylvanus Alabe received a very limited common school education in the 
district schools of Brown county before he enlisted in the war at the early 
age of seventeen. After returning home from the war he and his father con- 
tinued farming on the old homestead, where he remained until his marriage, 
]\Iarch [.4, 1869, when he began farming for himself in Brown county. In 
1874 he moved to Nebraska and remained there for two years, after which 
he came to Clay township, in this county, and settled on a rented farm of fifty 
acres, which he operated for the next thirteen years. He was a hard-working 
man who attended strictly to his own affairs and by thrift and economy he 



204 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

succeeded in saving enough to purchase a small farm. After he had once 
made a start he added to his land holdings until at the present time he is the 
owner of two hundred and eighty acres of fine land in Clay township. His 
success can be attributed only to hard work and upright dealings in all* of his 
business transactions. 

Mr. Mabe married Harriet C. Bartholomew, the daughter of Eli and 
Mamie M. (Fuller) Bartholomew, and to this union there have been born 
two children, Eli and Lorenzo F. Eli. a farmer living at Pecksburg, in this 
county, married Lora McCormick and has one daughter, Mabel. Lorenzo 
F,. a miller and implement dealer living at Clayton, in this county, married 
Rilla Hurley, and they have one child, Lorenzo Lyle. Mrs. Mabe's parents 
had a family of eight children: Ira, the wife of Zibil Baldwin; John, who 
married Savannah Lewis; Augustus, deceased May 30, 1864; Cyrus, who 
married .Sarah Handcher; Pamelia, who married William Cox; Harriet, the 
wife of Mr. Mabe; Polly, deceased 1849; Maria, deceased. Mrs. Mabe's 
mother died November 29. 1873. Mrs. Mabe's father died July 16, 1891, in 
this county. The grandparents of Mrs. Mabe on her mother's side were 
natives of Trumbull county, Ohip, and had a familv of four children, Abial, 
Mary, Eli, and a Mrs. Scofield. 

Mr. Mabe is a stanch Democrat, and has voted this ticket for a half cen- 
tury. \\'hile he has always taken an interest in political affairs he has never 
aspired to any public office, preferring to devote all of his time and attention 
to his agricultural interests. He is a member of the Grand Army of the 
Republic and is one of the most active members of the post at Danville. Mr. 
Mabe has won an honorable name for himself in this county, because of his 
upright life and he and his wife are valuable members of society in this 
county. 



EDOM R. HADLEY and MILTON M. HADLEY. 

The history of a county or state is chiefly a chronicle of the deeds and 
lives of those who have conferred honor and dignity upon the societv of that 
county or state. The world judges the character of a community by those of 
its representative citizens and yields its tribute of admiration and respect to 
those whose words and actions constitute the record of a state or county's 
prosperity or pride. Among the prominent citizens of Hendricks county, 
Indiana, who have long since passed away, but who in their day took a 
prominent part in the life of the community in which they lived are Edom 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 205 

R. Hadley and his son, Milton AI. Hadle3^ This father and son were good 
men and good citizens in the highest sense of the term and the locaHty in 
which they Hved suffered an irreparable loss when they passed away. They 
were useful citizens of the commonwealth, men who were deeply interested 
in the welfare and social uplift of their fellow citizens, men who stood for 
the highest ideals of citizenship and all that it means. The brief history of 
their lives which is here given can be nothing more than a poor tribute to 
their worth as men who did their duty as God gave them the power to so do. 
Edom R. Hadley, the son of James and Mary (Richardson) Hadley, 
was born in North Carolina in 1819, and when six years of age, came to 
Hendricks county, Indiana, with his parents, and settled two and one-half 
miles west of Danville on Mill creek. There his father entered land from 
the government and at the time of his death owned six hundred acres. Here 
in the wilderness and amidst pioneer conditions which have long since disap- 
peared, Edom R. Hadley grew to manhood and here married Louisiana 
Vannice, daughter of Peter and Sallie (Smith) A^annice. She was born in 
Lincoln county, Kentucky, February 7, 1829. and came with her parents when 
she was three years of age to this county, where they located in the northwest- 
ern part of Marion township, near the Putnam county line. Peter Vannice 
entered land from the government and lived on his farm of two hundred 
acres until his death, which occurred in 1888, on February 9th, his wife 
dying three days later. It is interesting to note that had they lived until the 
14th of the same month, they would have been married sixty years. Peter 
Vannice and wife reared a large family of eleven children, only five of whom 
are now living: Mrs. Joan Allen, who lives in Iowa; Samuel, of the same 
state; Mrs. Sarah Ferguson, of Chicago. Illinois; Mrs. Ella Hawkins, of 
Indianapolis; and Mrs. Louisiana Hadley. the widow of the late Edom R. 
Hadley. Mrs. Hadley grew to womanhood at a time when none of the mod- 
ern conveniences were to be had; no pianola was found in the parlor at that 
time, the music then in the evenings being furnished by the wolves, which 
roamed the forests and howled around the log cabin. For fourteen years 
after their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Edom R. Hadley lived one mile west of 
Danville, at which time they moved to the present home farm of tw^o hun- 
dred and eighty acres, three miles north of New Winchester. On this farm 
Mr. Hadley died in March, 1888, having lived a full and complete life in 
every sense of the word. He and his wife were members of the Cumberland 
Presbyterian church and to this church he gave his conscientious service. 
Three children were born to bless their union: Jennie, the wife of George 
W. House, of Danville, who is the mother of three children. Ida. Nettie and 



206 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

George; ]\Iilton M.. whose history is reviewed later in this article; Charles 
L., who married Jennie Kurtz, and lived on a farm two and one-half miles 
west of Danville until his death; he left two children, Dovie and Myrtle. 

Milton M. Hadley was born December 21, 1857, one mile north of Dan- 
ville, and grew to manhood on the homestead farm north of New Win- 
chester. After finishing the common and high school course at New Win- 
chester, he entered Lincoln University at Lincoln, Illinois, from which institu- 
tion he graduated in 1883, with the degree of Master of Arts. In 1887 he 
married Mary Fielding, a lady whom he met while attending school at 
Lincoln College. They entered the freshman class there together and their 
friendship ripened into love and this was consummated by their marriage 
after they left college. Mrs. Hadley was born in Chandlerville, Illinois, the 
daughter of James and Elizabeth (Briar) Fielding. Her father was a 
native of England, where his birth occurred in the city of Manchester, and 
here he lived until he was eleven years of age. According to the custom in 
his home town in England he attended school the year round, but leaving his 
native country at the age of eleven with his parents to come to America, his 
education stopped at that time. However, he was a well read man and was 
an omnivorous reader all his life. His parents, whose names also were James 
and Elizabeth, came to America and settled fourteen miles east of Beards- 
town, Illinois, on a farm and there they lived the remainder of their lives. 
Mary Fielding grew up in Illinois and it was while attending Lincoln Uni- 
versity that she met her future husband. For a time after their marriage 
they lived in Kansas City, but they soon tired of city life and moved to 
Marion township in this county, where he resumed farming and followed 
this occupation until his death, December 23, 1895. They had one son, 
Harry, who was born August 11. 1888, and is now attending the University 
of Illinois, where he will receive his doctor's degree in commercial chemistry 
in June. 1914. Harry Hadley graduated from the Danville high school and 
then from James Milliken University with the degree of Bachelor of Science. 
The next year he took his Master of Arts degree in chemistry at the Uni- 
versity of Illinois and will take his Doctor of Philosophy degree there this 
year. He is doing special research work in chemistry for the university and 
has a very promising future before him. 

Milton M. Hadley was a man of exceptionally strong character, clean 
minded, and a man whom to know was to love. He was elected a ruling 
elder in the Presbyterian church in 1892, and at the time of his death was 
superintendent of the Sunday school and president of the Christian Endeavor. 

Thus is shown in brief outline the careers of two men. father and son. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 207 

who lived lives of remarkable purity and sweetness and whose influence was 
always cast for better and higher things. Their two widows are living to- 
gether today and are beloved by everyone in the neighborhood. 



JOHN N. PHILLIPS. 



The gentleman whose name forms the caption of this sketch belongs to 
that class of men who win in life's battles by earnest endeavor, coupled with 
good judgment and in whatever he has undertaken he has shown himself to 
be a man of ability and honor. Lie has always been ready to lend his aid in 
defending principles affecting the public good, having ably and conscientiously 
served his county in the capacity of a public school teacher for twenty years, 
while in other phases of civic life he has so ordered his actions as to earn the 
endorsement and support of his fellow citizens. 

John N. Phillips, the cashier of the First National Bank of Amo, was 
born two miles southwest of Amo on June 24. 1855. His parents were 
Samuel and Rachel (Newman) Phillips, of North Carolina. His grand- 
father. John S. Phillips, was born in Pennsylvania in 1776. His great- 
grandfather, John Phillips, was a native of Germany and went to North 
Carolina about 1789, taking his family with him, and his death occurred 
shortly after settling in that state. The children of the grandfather, John S. 
Phillips, came to Indiana in the thirties and located in Wayne county, where 
he afterwards joined them and died about 1832. Samuel Phillips, the father 
of the subject of this sketch, came to Hendricks county. Indiana, about 1836, 
where all of his children were born and reared. Mr. and Mrs. Samuel 
Phillips were the parents of nine children, two of whom died in infancy. 

John N. Phillips was the sixth child in order of birth of his father's 
family and was reared as a farmer's lad, receiving his elementary education 
in the district schools and completing it by taking a course in the Central 
Normal College at Danville. As a boy he showed unusual intelligence and 
his parents were anxious to give him the best possible education. After com- 
pleting his course in the college at Danville he became a public school teacher 
and followed that noble profession for the next twenty vears, during which 
time he was rated as one of the most successful teachers of Hendricks county 
In 1898 he retired from the teaching profession and for eight years he was 
engaged in the lumber business and farming. Then he. with others, organ- 
ized the First National Bank of Amo, the organization articles being dated 



208 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

January 20, 1906. Its present officers are as follows: E. B. Owen, presi- 
dent; George W. Christie, vice-president; J. N. Phillips, cashier; Miller E. 
Kendall, assistant cashier. The bank now^ has a capital stock of twenty- 
five thousand dollars. 

Mr. Phillips was married August 21, 1879, to Joanna Ratliff of Hend- 
ricks county, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Isaac Ratliff, an old and highly 
respected family of that county. Mr. and Mrs. Phillips are the parents of 
one daughter, Elsie, who married Otis Rammel. Mr. Phillips is a member 
of the Friends church and an active worker in all the activities of that denom- 
ination, being especially interested in the Sabbath school work. Mr. Phillips 
is a man whom to know is to respect, and during his career in this county 
he has led a life which has been free from censure of any kind. He has 
always been ready to aid in the moral or material welfare of those who 
required assistance, and in every particular measures up to the highest ideals 
of the American citizen. 



WILL A. KING. 



It is a well recognized fact that the most powerful influence in shaping 
and controlling public life is the press. It reaches a greater number of people 
than any other agency and thus has always been used and, in the hands of 
persons competent to use it, always will be a most important factor in mould- 
ing public opinion and shaping the destiny of the nation. The gentleman to 
a brief review of whose life these few lines are devoted is prominently con- 
nected with the journalism of central Indiana, and at this time is editor 
and publisher of the Danville Gazette, one of the best Democratic papers of 
this section of the state in news, editorial ability and mechanical execution. 

Will A. King, the son of E. Douglas and Ruth (Warner) King, w^as 
born in Cincinnati. Ohio, May 5, 1864, and has lived in this county since he 
was fourteen years of age. His father was born in Uniontown, Pennsyl- 
vania, and came to Indiana in 1869 as editor of the Fort Wayne Sentinel, 
and also has the honor of publishing the first directory of that city. In 
February, 1878, he came to Danville and established the Hendricks County 
Democrat and in September, 1880, he started the Danville Gazette, taking 
his son, Will A., the subject of this sketch, into ])artnership with him. 
Shortly after starting the Gazette he accepted a position in the government 
printing office at Washington, D. C, and left his son in full charge of the 
paper. 




WILL A. KING 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 209 

\y\]\ A. King received a good practical education and when a small boy- 
entered the printing office of his father, who had been a printer and news- 
paper man for thirty years. Under the able guidance of the latter he acquired 
a through knowledge of the mechanical part of the business and, l>eing 
a lad of keen ability, he was soon competent to assume the control of the 
paper and manage it from the editorial as well as the mechanical side. As 
has been said, he helped his father establish the Gazette in 1880 and he has 
been in charge of the paper up to the present time. It has for years been 
recognized as the official organ of the Democratic party in Hendricks county. 

Mr. King was married to Jennie Hill, the daughter of John C. and 
Sarah J. (Parker) Hill, and they have an interesting family of three 
children. Ruth A.. Sarah J. and Robert H. They are fitting their children for 
their future careers by giving them the best possible education. 

In view of the fact that 'Mr. King has been the editor of the leading 
Democratic paper of the county for so many years, it is not strange that 
he has been a very important factor in the deliberations of his party. Prob- 
ablv no other man in the county has exerted as much influence in the 
councils of his party as has Mr. King, and it is to his credit that he always 
takes his stand on the side of clean politics. Personally, he is a man who 
easily makes friends and. being a newspaper man. has friends in ever}- part 
of the countv. 



JOSEPH B. FLEECE. 



Specific mention is made of many of the worthy citizens of Hendricks 
countv within the pages of this book, citizens who have figured in the growth 
and development of this favored locality and whose interests are identified 
with its every phase of progress, each contributing in his sphere of action to 
the well-being of the community in which he resides and to the advancement 
of its normal and legitimate growth. Among this num.ber is he whose name 
appears above, peculiar interest attaching to this career from the fact that for 
the past ten years he has been prominently identified with the banking busi- 
ness in North Salem, during which time he has also taken a prominent part 
m the civic and moral advancement of his community. 

Joseph B. Fleece, a banker of North Salem, was born near North Salem. 

July 24, 1866. His parents were Capt. Jacob and Lettie B. ( Ashby ) Fleece. 

The late Jacob H. Fleece was born near Danville. Kentucky, on June 4. 1829. 

and died in North Salem. November 2. 1910. a devout Christian man who 

(14) 



2IO HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

was honored and respected by everyone. The parents of Captain Fleece were 
Charles and Mary (Harlan) Fleece, who came to this county from Ken- 
tucky and settled in Eel River township in 1836. Here Captain Fleece was 
reared to manhood and in October, 1853, married Lettie B. Ashby, the daugh- 
ter of Silas and Nancy (Radford) Ashby. Silas Ashby was the son of 
Thompson and Lettie (Van Meter) Ashby. The Ashby family is a remark- 
able family. They trace their ancestry back to England where for centuries 
they have been people of honor. Thompson Ashby was born in Virginia 
and at the age of fourteen, with two older brothers, came to Kentucky where 
he grew to manhood and then married Lettie Van Meter. Her father was 
given a large grant of land for his services in the Revolutionary ^^'ar, but lost 
part of it by defective title. Thompson Ashby lived the remainder of his life 
in Kentucky, and upon his death his widow sold his farm and brought her 
children to Lidiana and settled between Ladoga and Roachdale in Putnam 
county. There she entered land, managed wisely and reared her children to 
useful lives. They prospered and became large land owners and today 
their descendants are numerous about Ladoga and are among the most 
highly respected people of the various communities in which they live. Lettie 
N. Ashby, the wife of Capt. Jacob Fleece, was born and reared near Roach- 
dale and lived there until her marriage. After his marriage. Captain Fleece 
and his brother John engaged in the mercantile business at Ladoga in Mont- 
gomery county, but a year later he returned to his farm in Eel River tow^n- 
ship in this county. In 1859 he was elected county recorder of Hendricks 
county and served until the fall of 1861 when he resigned and entered the 
army. In September, 1861, he was commissioned captain of Company A, 
Fifty-first Regiment of Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and remained in the 
service as ca])tain until his resignation in September, 1862. He then re- 
turned to this countv and resumed farming. In 1882 he was elected to 
represent this county in the lower house of the State Legislature, and was 
re-elected in 1884 and again in 1886, serving six years in the Legislature. 
He was a very successful farmer and at the time of his death owned two hun- 
dred and seventy acres of land, which he farmed until within the last fifteen 
years of his life when he moved to North Salem. He was a Mason and a 
member of the Grand Army of the Republic. He and his wife belonged to 
the Christian church, in which he was an elder for many years. Cajitain and 
Mrs. Fleece were the parents of three children: Silas F. ; Joseph B., whose 
history is herein presented ; and Lulu C. Silas F. Fleece is in the hardware 
business at Tuxedo, the eastern part of Indianapolis. He married Francis 
Davis and had three children, Aletha, Alta and Verner. Lulu married L. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 211 

C. Moore, and lives on the home farm a mile west of North Salem. They 
have two children, Herbert and Maynard. 

Joseph B. Fleece grew up on the farm, attended the district schools and 
then took a course in a business college at Indianapolis. In 1888 he en- 
gaged in the merchandise business at North Salem in partnership with his 
brother-in-law, L. C. Moore, under the firm name of Moore & Fleece. The 
firm continued in business for ten years, when it was dissolved and Mr. Fleece 
went to Indianapolis and entered the real estate business. Two years later 
he returned to North Salem and became interested in the North Salem Bank 
with Charles W. and George B. Davis and has continued in the banking busi- 
ness ever since. In addition to his banking interests, Mr. Fleece owns about 
two hundred acres of land in the southern part of Texas near Houston and 
Brownsville. 

Mr. Fleece was married in 1897 to Emma Williams, the daughter of 
Alexander and Martha (Griggs) Williams. Alexander Williams was born 
in Marion township, this county, June 26, 1840, the son of James B. and Eliza 
(Ramsey) Williams. James B. Williams and his wife were born, reared 
and married in Kentucky, coming to this county in 1836 in wagons. They 
bought one hundred and twenty acres of land in Marion township from a 
man who had entered the land, but was not able to make any improvement. 
They started in the wilderness, built a real pioneer cabin of round logs, 
puncheon floor, clapboard roof and stick-and-mud chimney. Alexander Will- 
iams had two sisters and five brothers, of whom he is the only one living at 
the present time. His mother died when he was about fourteen years of age, 
and his father married Eliza Tamplin, who is now living near Danville with 
four children by his second marriage : Matilda, Sarah, Eleanor and Tilman. 
James B. Williams died in 1878. In October, 1863, Alexander Williams 
enlisted in Company B, One Hundred and Twenty-fourth Regiment of 
Indiana Volunteer Infantry and was immediately transferred to General 
Sherman's command in the Atlanta campaign. Later his company was 
ordered to return to General George Thomas in Tennessee and was in the 
attack on Nashville, December, 1864, and followed Hood's army until they 
crossed the Tennessee river in the early part of 1865. Shortly afterwards 
his regiment was ordered to Washington, D. C. and was there compelled to 
camp in an open field without shelter in zero weather. Thence his regiment 
was taken by boat to the coast of North Carolina and landed at ]Moorhead 
City. His regiment was sent there in order to repair the railroad in North 
Carolina to connect Sherman with A^irginia and ship him supplies. In North 



212 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Carolina he was in several skirmishes of a minor character. He took part 
in the Grand Review at Washington, D. C, in the summer of 1865 and was 
later mustered out at Indianapolis in July. Immediately after the close of 
the war he returned to Marion township and resumed farming. In 1871 he 
moved to Eel River township where he bought land and, by gradual addition. 
has now accumulated three hundred and twenty-one acres of land in that 
township. In 1907 he retired from active life and bought a home in North 
Salem, where he is now living a retired life. Alexander Williams was first 
married in January. 1867, to Anna Fassett. the daughter of Isaac and Unity 
Fassett. To this union one son was born, Harry. His first wife died about 
fifteen days after the son was born. Harry now lives two miles north of 
North Salem on a farm. He married Pearl Speers and has one son. Aubry. 
who married August Gaines and lives on a farm north of Danville. Alex- 
ander Williams was married the second time in June, 1871, to Martha 
Griggs, the daughter of David and Emeline (Webster) Griggs. She was 
born in Clark county. Kentucky, and came to Marion township in this county, 
when she was a babe. To this second marriage five children were born: 
Emeline, the wife of Joseph B. Fleece. Anna, the widow of Clarence Brvant. 
Flora, who received a fine education, attending the State Normal at Terre 
Haute and later the State University at Bloomington. She taught several 
terms in Hendricks county, and also at Indianapolis, but is now making her 
home with her father in North Salem. Dicey, the wife of Frank Branch, 
lives at Stockton, California, and has three children, Helen, Doris and 
Frances. Urban L. lives on his father's farm. He married Lydia Davis, 
the daughter of Smith R. and Martha Davis, and has one son, Roger. The 
second wife of Mr. Williams died March 8, 1910. 

Mr. and Mrs. Fleece are the parents of four interesting children, 
Pauline, Eugene, Maurice and Harlan. Mrs. Fleece is an accomplished 
musician and a pleasant woman in every way. For some years before her 
marriage, she was a teacher of instrumental music, having received her train- 
ing in the music department of the Central Normal College at Danville. 
Mr. and Mrs. Fleece are loyal members of the Christian church and Mr. 
Fleece has been a deacon in the denomination for many years. He is a mem- 
ber of the Knights of Pythias. In the civic life of his community, Mr. 
Fleece has always taken an active interest, giving his support to all "move- 
ments having for their object the advancement of the general welfare of his 
town and vicinity. He is a genial and agreeable man to meet and enjoys a 
justly merited popularity among his many acquaintances. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 213 



CHARLES p. HORNADAY. 



Among the strong and influential citizens of Hendricks county, Indiana, 
the record of whose Hves have become an essential part of the history of this 
section, the gentleman whose name appears above occupies a prominent place 
and for years has exerted a beneficial influence in the locality where he re- 
sides. His chief characteristics are keenness of perception, a tireless energy, 
honesty of purpose and motive and everyday common sense, which has en- 
abled him not only to advance his own interests, but also largely contribute 
to the moral and material advancement of the community. 

Charles P. Hornaday was born June 12, 1866, in Washington township, 
Hendricks county, Indiana. His parents were Anson D. and Sarah 
(Hanna) Hornaday, both of whom were natives of Indiana. Anson Horna- 
day was a farmer by occupation during all of his life and settled in Hendricks 
county in 1865, having come to this county from Indianapolis, where he had 
been a contractor. He engaged in agricultural pursuits in Washington 
township, and continued to reside there until his death, which occurred in 
1908 at the age of eighty years. His widow is still living in Plainfield at the 
age of eighty-one. Anson Hornaday was a member of the Free and Ac- 
cepted Masons, and a member of the Methodist Episcopal church from his 
boyhood. Mr. and Mrs. Anson Hornaday were the parents of six children :' 
Ella, deceased; James P., who is now the special correspondent of the Indi- 
anapolis Nezi's with headquarters at Washington City; Charles P., the im- 
mediate subject of this sketch; W. D., of Austin, Texas, where he is engaged 
in the newspaper business; Mrs. Mary L. Hadley, of Plainfield, and John, 
who died in infancy. 

Charles P. Hornaday was reared on the home farm and educated in the 
common schools, finishing his educational training at Plainfield Academy. 
He then took a course in the Indianapolis Business College, and after his 
graduation from that institution, engaged in the mercantile business in Indi- 
anapolis for a short time. In 1889 he came to Danville, where he followed 
the feed and grain business for two years. He next engaged in the grocery 
business and operated a grocery store for the next seventeen years, at the 
expiration of which time he retired from the grocery business and went to 
Indianapolis, where he engaged in the real estate business for three years. 
He then returned to Danville and in 1910 was appointed postmaster by 
President William H. Taft, a position which he held until 1914. 

Mr. Hornaday was married November 28, 1896, to Effie M. Blair, the 



214 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

daughter of Clark Blair, of Washington township in this county. To this 
union there have been born four children, Howard B., Sarah Josephine, 
Mary Louise and Charles P., Jr. Mr. Hornaday is a Republican in his 
political views and has always taken an active interest in politics, although he 
had never held any public office until his appointment as postmaster of Dan- 
ville. He is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, and, with his wife, 
is affiliated with the Methodist Episcopal church of Danville. He is also a 
member of the Chamber of Commerce of Indianapolis and the Commercial 
Club of Danville. He. is actively interested in all civic matters and is promi- 
nent in all mo\'ements looking toward the betterment of his home town. He is a 
man who has won a large circle of friends and acquaintances and is uni\ersally 
regarded as one of Hendricks county's leading citizens. 



WESLEY BRADY. 



The gentleman whose name appears at the head of this article is well 
and favorably known throughout Hendricks county and particularly in the 
vicinity of Danville. This is not because he can claim great wealth nor be- 
cause of remarkable accomplishments in mercantile life, though he has been 
a successful business man; but because of the fact that he is genial in manner, 
warm hearted, charitable and kindly to man and beast. In addition to these 
qualities he is a recognized authority upon the care and breeding of horses ; 
and his proverbial kindness to the animals in his charge has shown marked 
results. These animals are docile and well trained, and could they speak, 
they would probably say, "We do our best for him l)ecause he is so kind." 
And this quality in him has appealed to his fellow men. 

Wesley Brady is a true product of Hendricks county, having made it his 
home since the day of his birth, in the year 1858. His parents, George W. 
Brady and Delilah (Selch) Brady, were among the early inhabitants of the 
county, and his maternal grandparents were among the first to l)ra\-e the 
terrors of the unbroken forest. 

His father. George W., was born in Morgan county, Indiana, near 
Mooresville, in the year 1830, 1)ut during his childhood liis parents. Merrill 
Brady and wife, emigrated to Hendricks county. Here, near Carter, burg, 
they took up their abode, and the remaining days of their lives were spent 
upon this homestead, he cultivating the soil and toiling diligently to ac(|uire 
sustenance for the family. !Mr. Brady was particularly successful as a 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 21$ 

breeder of and dealer in live stock, and the love which he bore for domestic 
animals, particularly the horse, was inculcated into the mind and heart of 

his son. 

His wife, Delilah Selch, was a native of Hendricks county also, her 

parents being one of the early families to brave the terrors of the long, 

tedious journev by wagon from Kentucky, through the forest country m- . 

fested by wild'animals. Near the present site of Cartersburg in Hendricks 

county, thev selected their abode and entered from the government eighty 

acres of land. This tract was later doubled in size, and the arduous labor 

of clearing away the grand old forest trees, which to-day are so highly prized, 

was gladly endured as they saw the cabin raised which was to be their home. 

During the time of building, one of the workers shot a deer at the hour for 

noon day rest, and at night the howling of wolves trying to get their sheep 

disturbed their slumbers. Here they lived the life of the pioneer, the father 

and sons hewing the huge trees to clear space for the garden and grain, and 

the mother and daughters spinning and weaving, and later, knitting and 

sewing by hand the products of the wheel and loom. Baking and broiling 

were accomplished by the open fireplace, and their table was replete with 

game. 

Hence, we see that the subject of our sketch is truly a son of Hendricks 
countv. His childhood and youth were spent on the farm of his father, and 
he was busily engaged in all the activities of the place. At the age of twenty- 
four years, his marriage to Kate Riggen was solemnized. She, also, is a 
native of Hendricks county, having been born and reared near Cartersburg. 
His parents took the long journey from North Carolina by wagon in the 
early days of this county, and purchased the tract of land which has been 
their homestead throughout their days. 

Soon after they were united in marriage. Mr. and Mrs. Brady estab- 
lished their home on a farm in the vicinity of their former homes, and here 
he engaged in the pursuit of agriculture until the year 1909, supplementing 
this work, however, with the purchase and sale of horses. In this year he 
brought his family to Danville and entered the livery business with John W. 
Ader"! under the firm name of Ader & Brady. In this vocation he has been 
at liberty to exercise all his talents in the care and training of horses, for 
which he is eminently fitted by heredity, experience and environment, for the 
love of this work is inherited from several generations of ancestors. He is 
now the possessor of "Guy Princeton," a horse that has sired more speed and 
high class road horses than any other stallion in Hendricks county. Many 



2l6 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

of his offspring have sold for sums ranging from fifteen hundred to twenty- 
five hundred dollars. His pedigree runs back three generations to Hamble- 
tonian Ten. 

But dearly as Mr. Brady loves his horses, his home and family are of 
paramount importance in his life. His one daughter, Lela, is now the wife 
of Raymond Miles, and resides near Clayton. Though a man of few words, 
he is proverbially a good neighbor and stanch friend ; and his many kind acts 
have w^on for him a more desirable reputation than could the possession of 
large wealth. He is affiliated with the Knights of Pythias, among whom he 
has many devoted friends. 



FRED B. SOPER. 



In the early days the Middle West was often a tempting field to ener- 
getic, ambitious, strong-minded men, and Indiana was filled with them 
during the time she was struggling up to a respectable position in the sister- 
hood of states. There was a fascination in the broad field and great promise 
which this newer region presented to activity that attracted many men and 
induced them to brave the discomforts of the early life here for the pleasure 
and gratification of constructing their fortunes in their own way and after 
their own methods. It is this class of men, more than any other, who give 
.shape, direction and character to the business of a community. Fred B. 
Soper, well known citizen of Center township, this county, is the son of 
one of the pioneer citizens of this community, his father, the late Charles 
Soper, for many years being one of the most substantial and prominent 
citizens of Hendricks county. He became identified with this section at an 
early date and for many years wielded a potent influence in local circles. 

Fred B. Soper was born in Marion township, this county, on December 
31, 1869, about one and one-half miles north of New Winchester, the son 
of Charles and Sarah (Underw^ood) Soper. Charles Soper was born in 
Bourbon county, Kentucky, on December 5, 1823, and came to this county 
in 1853. He was twice married, his first wife, whom he married in Ken- 
tucky, being Nancy Bryan. Their marriage took place in 1844 and she 
died after coming to this county, in 1867. She left three children, namely: 
James, deceased; Mary Alice and Charles Clay. Mr. Soper took as his 
second wife Sarah Underwood, to whom were born two children, the eldest 
being the immediate subject of this sketch, and the youngest, William Ken- 




CHARLES SOPER 




j;--,*- iu SS ^yf.vU^, S3r.r//y 



1^^^ £. s/^yiM^ 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 21 7 

dricks. who departed this Hfe July 13, 1902. Sarah Underwood was a 
native of Decatur county, this state, her parents originally coming from 
Kentucky and later coming to this county, where her father entered from 
the government one thousand acres of land in Marion township. She died 
in Lake county, Illinois, on September 13, 1909. 

Charles Soper, the subject's father, was one of the leading farmers of 
his day, being thoroughly progressive in his work at a time when many tillers 
of the soil rather hesitated to depart from old established methods. He was 
a firm believer in modern ideas in agriculture and ever endeavored to keep 
right in the front rank in his chosen vocation. He first settled in Marion 
township, this county, on a farm of about five hundred acres, where he had 
excellent opportunities to work out some of his advanced theories. There 
he lived until the fall of 1870, when he moved to Danville, where he resided 
for about thirteen years. Becoming wearied of town life and hungering 
for the country again, he returned to the farm where the subject now lives. 
This homestead contains one hundred and seventy-four acres, all buildings 
and improvements being modern, and is one of the best conducted farms in 
the county. On this farm Charles Soper passed his declining years, his 
death occurring on January 20, 1909. He was quiet and unassuming in man- 
ner, yet Avith a quality of firmness and determination rarely equaled. Highly 
successful in his chosen field of endeavor, he won his way by his never- 
ceasing effort, tireless energy and rare judgment and ability, yet, with all 
his large interests, he found considerable time to devote to his home and 
family, being a man of marked domestic traits. His fraternal affiliation 
for some years was with the Tndependeent Order of Odd Fellows, but he 
dropped his membership in this society shortly before his death. He was 
a stanch Democrat in his earlier years, but later endorsed the principles 
of the Prohibition party and was active in its affairs as related to his com- 
munity, but never aspired to office in either party. He was one of those 
splendid men of brains and brawn who always prove themselves such strong 
factors in the improvement of a new country, for, by reason of their varied 
qualities, they lead in the moral, educa'tional and material advancement of 
their community and their influence for general uplift can never be esti- 
mated. 

Fred B. Soper spent his early 3^ears at home, assisting his father in his 
labors and imbibing from him the principles of life and business which make 
him one of the leading citizens of today. He received his elementary 
education in the township schools, later attending the high school at Dan- 



i 



2l8 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ville, from which he was graduated in due time. He chose the vocation of 
his father as that of his own and all the efforts of his manhood years have 
been spent in this direction, until he is considered one of the most pro- 
gressive farmers of the county. He gives considerable attention to the 
breeding and raising of cattle and hogs, principally the latter. Mr. Soper 
has never married and he and his sister, Alary Alice, who also remains 
single, make their home together on the old homestead, and she unites with 
him in a determined effort to make their business an unqualirted success. 

Both Mr. and Miss Soper are members of the Christian church, being 
interested in its welfare and they contril^ute liberally of their means toward 
its support. Mr. Soper's fraternal affiliations are with the Knights of 
Pythias, being identified with the local lodge at Danville. He is a stanch 
Republican, firmly believing in the principles laid down by that party, and 
takes an active interest in political matters in his community. While never 
aspiring for office, his influence at the polls is a thing reckoned with by those 
who do seek such honors. Mr. Soper is a quiet, unassuming man, with 
sterling qualities of heart and mind and well liked and respected throughout 
a wide acquaintance. His sincere interest in those with whom he comes 
in contact has won for him many warm friends and both he and his sister 
hold an enviable position in the estimation of their friends and neighbors. 
It is such men as he who are the saving class in any community and of whom 
it can truly be said they are the "salt of the earth." 

Miss vSoper deals in White Leghorn chickens and has the finest poultry 
farm and equii)ment in the Middle West. She is also a club woman, belong- 
ing to the Modern Priscilla and New Era clubs at Indianapolis, and to 
the Lawrence School Girls' Club. 



EDGAR M. BLESSING. 



There are individuals in nearly every community who, by reason of 
pronounced ability and force of character, rise above the heads of the masses 
and command the unbounded esteem of their fellow men. Characterized by 
perseverance and a directing spirit, two virtues that never fail, such men 
always make their presence felt and the vigor of their strong personalities 
serves as a stimulus and incentive to the young and rising generation. To 
this energetic and enterprising class the subject of this sketch very properly 
belongs. Having never been seized with the wanderlust spirit that has led 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 2ig 

many of Hendricks county's young men to other fields of endeavor and other 
states, Mr. Blessing has devoted himself to his adopted profession and to the 
public duties to which he has been called, and because of his personal worth 
and his accomplishments, he is clearly entitled to representation among the 
enterprising and progressive men of his locality. 

Edgar M. Blessing, the son of George A. and Margaret (Ladd) Bless- 
ing, was born in Wadena, Indiana, in 1876. He was given a good common 
school education, graduated from the high school at Wadena and later from 
the Indiana State Normal at Terre Haute in 1899. Between the time he en- 
tered the State Normal and his graduation he taught two years, and after his 
graduation was principal of the Plainfield high school for two years. During 
the summer of 1900 he was in attendance at Cornell University, Ithaca, New 
York. In 1901 he was for five months clerk of the Indiana Boys' School at 
Plainfield. In the fall of 1901 he entered the law department of the Univer- 
sity of Michigan, and graduated with the degree of Bachelor of Law in June, 
1904. In January, 1905, he opened a law office in Danville for the practice 
of law. A year later he was elected prosecuting attorne>'. and was re-elected 
in 1908. lanuary i. 191.?, he became county attorney, which office he now 
fills very acceptably. He has been distinguished by his work in the office of 
attorney in the well known Asher and Moon cases. As county attorney he is 
official attorney for the board of county commissioners, and has had work 
of great importance for them, which he has creditably performed. He pre- 
pared all the papers for the board of commissioners in the new court house 
matters and prepared the transcript for the sale of the bonds for two hundred 
and twenty-five thousand dollars for the proposed new court house. The 
bond attorneys who examined the transcript pronounced it legally perfect 
and could make no corrections or amendments and went so far as to compli- 
ment the work he did. In this high and difficult service for the public he 
evidenced capacity in his profession. 

Mr. Blessing was married October 5, 1905, to Geraldine M., the daugh- 
ter of Mr. and Mrs, Dr. C. A. White, of Danville. He and his wife are 
members of the Methodist Episcopal church of Danville, and are interested 
in all its activities. He is a member of the Knights of Pythias and is wor- 
shipful master of the Western Star Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons at 
Danville. He is also a thirty-second-degree Mason and a Shriner of Murat 
Temple, Indianapolis. 

Mr. Blessing loves the law because its purpose is the preservation for 
each citizen in the state of his rights for his own u-e. The practice of the 



220 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

true lawyer is the practice of patriotism, and Mr. Blessing has the high ambi- 
tion to be a true lawyer. There is no nobler ambition, no greater held for 
usefulness, and all that is needed is time to make him eminent in his profes- 
sion. He is now assistant to Prof. Solon Enloe, the head of the law depart- 
ment of Central Normal College, of Danville. 



WILLIAM W. TROTTER. 

Among the men of Llendricks county who have seen it emerge from a 
virgin forest to its present state as one of the finest agricultural counties in 
the state, there is no one who can give a more vivid picture of the steady 
growth of the county than William W. Trotter, wdio w-as born February 19, 
1833, about two miles east of North Salem, and has spent his entire life in 
this county. His parents were James and Sarah (Whitt) Trotter, and his 
father was born in Lee county, Virginia, June, 181 3, the son of James and 
Elizabeth (Culton) Trotter. In 181 5 the Trotter family came from Vir- 
ginia to Indiana and settled in Monroe county, where they remained for two 
or three years; from thence they went to Greencastle, Indiana, and still later 
to Lafayette, in this state. They finally settled in Hendricks county, where 
they bought a farm of two hundred acres south of North Salem. Here James 
Trotter, Sr., died on October 27, 1857. James Trotter, Jr., was a young man 
when his parents moved to this county, and shortly after coming here he mar- 
ried Sarah Whitt, who was a native of Montgomery county, Virginia. She 
had come to Indiana with the family of James Hedge, who only stayed a 
short time in Indiana, when they returned to their old home in Virginia. 
After his marriage, James Trotter, Jr., bought a farm east of North Salem, 
and lived there the rest of his life. He built a cabin in the woods and started 
life like all of the pioneers of early Indiana. William, whose history is here 
portrayed, remembers distinctly of the clearing of that farm and all of the 
incidents which surrounded their pioneer home. James Trotter died Febru- 
ary 16, 1878, his wife having passed away November 12, 1872. 

William V/. Trotter was married February 28. 1857, to Nancy E. 
Keith, who was born Deceriiber 9, 1838, in Putnam county, in this state, the 
daughter of Bird and Hannah (Stigleman) Keith. Bird Keith was a native 
of Virginia, the son of James Keith and wife. He married Hannah Stigle- 
man in Wayne county, Indiana, w^hen he was about thirty years of age, and 
shortly afterwards moved to Putnam county, where they lived until 1852. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 221 

They then moved to Hendricks county and located east of North Salem, al- 
though his wife had died before he came to this county. His death occurred 
later at Indianapolis. 

.Vfter Mr. Trotter married he engaged in farming on rented land for 
several years and then purchased a farm two miles east of North Salem, 
where he lived until February 19, 1901. at which time he retired from active 
farming and bought a home at North Salem, where he has since maintained 
his residence. Mr. and Mrs. W. W. Trotter are the parents of seven children 
living and two who died in infancy, the ones deceased being Jesse and Arthur 
T. Those living are Allen F., who lives with his father; James, a hardware 
merchant of North Salem; Silas B. and Oliver W., who are in the dry goods 
business in North Salem, and whose histories are given elsewhere in this 
volume; Charles M., a dentist of North Salem; Clarence H., agent for the 
Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayton Railway Company at North Salem, and 
Nora B., who is at home with her parents. 

Mr. Trotter was assessor of Eel River township from 1865 to 1867, 
and again from 1883 to 1891, and on several different occasions acted as 
treasurer for the land in his township. His father, James Trotter, had been 
township trustee of this same township for nine years, beginning in i860. 
Mr. Trotter and his whole family belong to the Christian church, and give 
to this denomination their most earnest support. Mr. Trotter has been a 
loyal member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows since April, 1870. 
Mr. and Mrs. Trotter have lived useful and busy lives in this county and 
have reared a family of children, all of whom have became useful members 
of the community. 



DAVID A. HIGGINS. 



It is a well authenticated fact that success comes as the result of legiti- 
mate and well applied energy, unflagging determination and perseverance in 
a course of action when once decided upon. She is never known to smile 
upon the idler or dreamer and she never courts the loafer, and only the men 
who have diligently sought her favor are crowned with her blessings. In 
tracing the history of David A. Higgins, of Danville, Hendricks county, 
Indiana, it is plainly seen that the success which he enjoys has been won by 
commendable qualities and it is also his personal worth that has gained for 
him the high esteem of those who know him. 



^22 HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 

David A. Higgins. deputy state oil inspector, was born in Hendricks 
county. Indiana, June 30, 1850. Tlis parents were Michael and Elizabeth 
(Plasters) Higgins, his father's birth having occurred in Putnam county, this 
state. He came to this county when he was a boy with his parents. Plis 
mother was born in. Kentucky and came to this county with her parents when 
a small child. Michael Higgins was a farmer in Marion township, where he 
lived on the same farm until his death in 1904. at the age of eighty-one years. 
He was a member of the Christian church at New Winchester, and served 
as trustee of Marion township for three terms. His wife died at the age 
of sixty in 1882. They were the parents of six children: William, of 
Marion township; David A., the immediate subject of this sketch; Mary J., 
wife of J. L. Wilson, of Marion township; Cassandra, wife of Henry Hunt; 
Charles E., of Marion township, and May, the wife of Willard Kellum, who 
lives on the home farm in Marion township. 

David A. Higgins was reared on his father's farm and received the edu- 
cation which was afforded by the district schools of his home township. He 
had more than the ordinary taste for knowledge and after fmishing the com- 
mon school course in his township, he attended the academy at Ladoga 'for 
two years when it was in charge of Professor M. B. Hopkins, later sirperin- 
tendent of instruction for Indiana. Upon the completion of his education 
he returned to his father's farm and followed agricultural pursuits until 1893. 
In addition to carrying on a general system of diversified farming he was 
actively engaged in the buying and shipj^ing of live stock. In fact,' this was 
the main source of his income. In 1893 he moved to Danville, where he 
engaged in the hardware business for the next ten years. In 19 10 he was 
appointed deputy oil inspector for Indiana, a position which he is still filling. 
Mr. Higgins has long been identified with the Democratic party in hts 
county and his worth as a man is shown by the fact that he has been the county 
chairman of the Democratic central committee for the past eight years. 
Hendricks county was formerly Republican. Imt is now practically in the 
hands of the Democratic party, only two of the county officers being 
Republicans. 

Mr. Higgins was married December i. 1881. to Angeline Hunt, the 
daughter of Ithamer and Eanny Jane Hunt, who were also residents of 
Marion township. Mr. and Mrs. Higgins are faithful and consistent mem- 
bers of the Christian church at Danville and are generous in their support 
of its various activities. Mr. Higgins is a member of the order of Free and 
Accepted Masons. He has ever enjoyed the respect and esteem of those 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 223 

who know him because of his friendly manner, marked ability in public 
affairs and upright living, and he is regarded by all as one of the substantial 
and worthy citizens of this locality. 



SILAS B. TROTTER. 



One of the influential citizens of North Salem is the gentleman to whose 
career the attention of the reader is now directed, a man who is ranked with 
the city's leading merchants and representative citizens. A man of excellent 
endowments and upright character, he has been a valued factor in local af- 
fairs and has ever commanded unequivocal confidence and esteem, being loyal 
to the upbuilding of his community and ever vigilant in his efforts to further 
the interests of his city along material, moral and civic lines. 

Silas B. Trotter, of the firm of Trotter Brothers, of North Salem, was 
born in Eel River township, in this county, on March i6, 1861, and is the son 
of William W. and Nancy E. (Keith) Trotter, whose family history is given 
elsewhere in this volume. 

Silas B. Trotter was given a good practical education and continued to 
reside on the home farm until 1886, at which time he went to the state of 
Missouri, where he spent one year, being employed in the railway round 
house. He then returned to North Salem and took up the study of teleg- 
raphy, and from 1890 to 1904 was a telegraph operator on the Cincmnati, 
Hamilton & Dayton railway at Montclair, Dana and North Salem. In 
1904 he went to Rush county, in this state, and engaged in the mercantile 
business until 1907. On April ist of that year he and his brother, Oliver 
W., formed a partnership in North Salem, and have continued there in busi- 
ness under the firm name of Trotter Brothers until the present time. They 
handle dry goods, shoes and millinery and have built up a large and lucrative 
trade in the town and vicinity, owing to their courteous and gentlemanly 
treatment of their patrons. They purchased this business of Bymaster & 
Company, a firm which had been established in North Salem for twenty 
years in the same line. Since taking over this business they have doubled 
the amount of stock in different lines and have improved the store in various 
ways. In 1912 they erected a new brick store room, into which they moved 
in January, 19 13. 

Silas B. Trotter was married in 1894 to Louisa J. Pritchett, the daugh- 
ter of Thomas C. and Mary (Stigleman) Pritchett. Her fathef was a farm- 



224 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

er and one of the early settlers of the county, having come here in 1826, when 
he was less than one year old. His parents were natives of Kentucky, and 
made the overland trip from that state to this county on horseback. Mr. and 
Mrs. Trotter are the parents of one daughter, Mary Geraldine. 

Fraternally, Mr. Trotter is a member of the order of Free and Accepted 
Masons, while religiously, he and his wife are both loyal members of the 
Christian church of North Salem, and are regarded by all wMth confidence and 
esteem in the community in which they live. 



OTIS E. GULLEY. 



In no profession is there a career more open to talent than is that of 
the law, and in no field of endeavor is there demanded a more careful prep- 
aration, a more thorough appreciation of the absolute ethics of life or of the 
underlying principles which form the basis of all human rights and privileges. 
Unflagging application and intuitive wisdom and determination full}' to utilize 
the means at hand are the concomitants which insure personal success and 
prestige in this great profession, which stands as the stern conservator of 
justice, and it is one into which none should enter without a recognition 
of the obstacles to be encountered and overcome and the battles to be won. 
Success does not perch on the banner of every person who enters the compet- 
itive fray, but comes only as the legitimate result of capability. Possessing 
all of these requisite qualities which stamp the able lawyer, Otis E. Gulley 
stands today among the eminent practitioners of Hendricks county. 

Otis E. Gulley, one of Danville's best lawyers and president of the board 
of trustees of Central Normal College, is a native of the county, having been 
born at North Salem on March 22, 1867. Reared to the life of a farmer's 
boy, he knows what kind of a life the farmer leads and this has been no small 
factor in his success as an attorney. The farmer in search of legal advice 
feels that he can have a sympathetic helper in Mr. Gulley and he finds that he 
is not mistaken. Mr. Gulley received his elementary education in the com- 
mon schools of his township and in preparing himself for teaching he at- 
tended Franklin College for one term. He came to Danville in 1891 and 
was shortly after admitted to the practice of law and has continued to fol- 
low that profession, for which he seems to be especially gifted. He is pe- 
culiarly gifted in the capacity of the investigator who is never satisfied 
until he gets? to the bottom of things. He goes around, under, over or 




V/^ S, ifc^ce^^ 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 225 

through obstacles, revohitionizing his methods if the old ways do not meet 
the exigencies of the situation. Old ways may do for some men, but if a 
new way is better he digs it up out of the limitless field of opportunity and 
presses it into service. His philosophy is that there is a way to do every- 
thing if the way can but be found. 

Mr. GuUey's life has been a busy one and he has had discouragements 
and disappointments to meet many times. Starting out as a school teacher 
at seventeen, he has received his education with his work. He lived in 
Arkansas two years and was living in that state in i8qo when the United 
States census was taken. He was census supervisor of the second district, 
which covered about half of the state. Coming back to Danville, he was 
elected to the office of county prosecutor two terms and was one of the best 
prosecutors the county ever had. 

Mr. Gulley was married in 1895 to Mary Tilford, of Martinsville, 
Indiana, and has a handsome home two and a half miles east of Danville. 
Mrs. Gullev died on July 2, 1907. He is a loyal member of the Christian 
church and is interested in the many activities of that society. He was 
a stanch Republican and his high standing among the men of the state is 
shown in the fact that he was nominated on the Republican ticket, in 19 10, 
for secretary of state. At the organization of the Progressive party, he became 
actively identified with that organization, by which he was honored with a 
nomination for Congress. In his fraternal relations he is a member of the 
Knights of Pythias, a thirty-second-degree Mason and a Mystic Shriner. 
He has been the president of the board of trustees of the Central Normal 
College for some years and takes a very active interest in the affairs of that 
institution. A man of sterling qualities, his honest and strictly square deal- 
ings, his upright principles and genial disposition have won for him numer- 
ous friends throughout the community in which he lives. 



JOHN A. SHOWALTER. 

The following is a sketch of a plain, honest man of affairs who by cor- 
rect methods and a strict regard for the interests of his patrons has made 
his influence felt in Danville and won for himself distinctive prestige in the 
professional circles of that city. He would be the last man to sit for 
romance or become the subject of fancy sketclies, nevertheless his life pre- 

(15) 



226 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

sents much that is interesting" and valuable and may be studied with profit by 
the young, whose careers are yet to be achieved. He is one of those whose 
integrity and strength of character must force them into an admirable 
notoriety which their modesty never seeks, who command the res])ect of their 
contemporaries and their posterity and leave the impress of their individuality 
deeply stamped upon the community. 

John A. Sho waiter, of the firm of Shirley & Sho waiter, was born in 
Henry county, Indiana, seven miles west of Newcastle, on July 15, 1854. 
His parents were Ashbury and Susan Ruth (Cooper) Showalter, the father 
being a native of Indiana, and the mother of Ohio. Ashbury Showalter was 
a contractor and is now living retired in Kennard, Henry county, Indiana. 
His wife died in 1898. Mr. and Mrs. Ashbury Showalter were the parents 
of five children, all of whom are living: John A. Shov/alter, the oldest of 
the family and the immediate subject of this sketch; Mrs. Anna Bouslog, of 
Kennard, Indiana; Mrs. Mary Cook, of Newcastle, Indiana; R. R. Showalter, 
of Knightstown, Indiana, and Ada, who lives with her father in Kennard. 

J. A. Showalter received his common school education in the district 
schools of Henry coimty, Indiana, and when a mere boy, began clerking in 
a grocery store near his home. In 1880, when he was twenty-six years of 
age, he came to Danville, where he became a member of the firm of Shirley, 
Showalter & McCoun. The btisiness was condticted under this name for 
about four years and a half, at the expiration of which time the firm name 
was changed to Shirley, Showalter & Company, Mr. McCoun retiring from 
the firm. This firm, starting in a modest way, has expanded both in size and 
stock until it is now one of the leading stores in Danville. The company 
employs a large number of clerks and the stock is one of the largest and most 
complete in its line to be found in any city the size of Danville. Courtesy 
and an evident desire to please all who patronize the store have been the 
strongest elements in the success which has accompanied the firm's efforts, 
and it has enjoyed at all times the full confidence of all who have done busi- 
ness with it. 

Mr. Showalter was married September 10, 1891, to Belle C. Conrad, of 
Florence, Boone county, Kentucky, and to this union there has been born one 
child, Mary Agnes. Mr. and Mrs. Showalter are devoted and consistent 
members of the Christian church, of which denomination Mr. Showalter has 
been a deacon for many years. Politically, he is an earnest supporter of the 
Republican party, but his business interests have precluded his taking an 
active part in political affairs. Mr. Showalter is regarded as a good business 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 22/ 

man and excellent manager, and a man who possesses sound judgment and 
foresight, and who believes in ever pressing forward, so that his success is 
but the legitimate result of the efforts which he puts forth. He enjoys the 
respect and esteem of those with whom he mingles for his friendly manner, 
his business ability, his interest in public affairs and his upright living. He 
is regarded by all as one of the substantial and worthy citizens of the city 
honored by his residence. 



EDWARD V. RAGLAN D. 

It is not an easy task to describe adequately a man who has led an 
eminently active and busy life and who has attained a position of relative 
distinction in the community with which his interests are allied. But biog- 
raphy finds its most perfect justification, nevertheless, in the tracing and re- 
cording of such a life history. It is. then, with a full appreciation of all that 
is demanded and of the painstaking scrutiny that must be accorded each state- 
ment, and yet wdth a feeling of satisfaction, that the writer essays the task 
of touching briefly upon the details of such a record as has been that of 
Edward V. Ragland whose eminently successful career is now under review. 

Edward V. Ragland, a prominent real estate and loan agent of Dan- 
ville, Indiana, was born February 2"/, 1863, in the southwestern corner of 
Marion township, Hendricks county, Indiana. His parents were James and 
Ann (Cord) Ragland, his father being a native of this county, born March 
28, 1838. The parents of James Ragland were Dudley and Ailsey (Flynn) 
Ragland, both of w^hom were born and reared in Kentucky, near Winchester. 
Dudley Ragland and wdfe came from Kentucky to Hendricks county in 
pioneer time and located on the Rockville road in the eastern edge of Marion 
township, w^here Dudley Ragland kept a tavern in the early days. Later he 
sold this farm and bought a farm near Reno, in the southwestern corner of 
Marion township, and later bought a farm three miles southwest of Coates- 
ville on which he lived until his death. James Ragland was born in Marion 
towmship, and upon reaching man's estate he w^as married to Ann Cord, the 
daughter of John and Christine (Caywood) Cord. Her parents were from 
New England, but came to this county early in their married life and lived 
here the remainder of their lives. In 1868 James Ragland and wife moved 
to Illinois and remained there nine years. They then came back and bought 



228 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

a farm in Alorgan county, just south of the Hendricks county line and have 
hved in that neighborhood ever since. 

Edward V. Ragland was reared on his father's farm and remained there 
until his marriage. He completed his education in the common schools in 
this county and then attended the Indiana State Normal at Terre Haute, after 
which he taught for nine years in Morgan and Putnam counties, Indiana, and 
in Edgar county, Illinois. He retired from his teaching profession in 1891 
and engaged in the general merchandise business at Broad Park, a village in 
the eastern part of Putnam county, which he named. There he built up a 
lucrative business and remained two years, whereupon he and the man with 
whom he had gone into partnership dissolved and he moved his stock to Lake 
Valley in the northwestern part of Morgan county, where he remainecl for 
the next five years, three of which he was postmaster. In 1899 he sold his 
store to S. M. Johnson and after a one, year's residence at Martinsville, where 
he dealt in live stock, he bought a farm in Franklin township in Hendricks 
county, where he resided three and one-half years. His wife owned a farm 
in the immediate vicinity, part of the farm known as the Green Valley farm. 
In February, 1904. Mr. Ragland moved to Danville and engaged in the real 
estate, loan and insurance business, which he has followed up to the present 
time. In this line of work he has been uniformly successful, listing valuable 
property and building up a loan and insurance business which is netting him 
very handsome returns. Nearly all his life Mr. Ragland has engaged in 
dealing in horses, even while principally interested in other lines of business. 
He is a breeder of high-grade road horses and owns some line animals at the 
present time. 

While attending the State Normal at Terre Haute, Mr. Ragland became 
acquainted with Rusha E. Hadley, the daughter of Jehu and Jerusha (Stiles) 
Hadley, and before moving to Martinsville they were married. Jehu Hadley 
was one of the most prominent farmers of Hendricks county. Fie was born 
in Chatham county, North Carolina. October 19, 1810, and in 1825 went with 
his parents, James T. and Mary ( Richardson ) Hadley, to Hendricks county 
and located in Center township. He was married August 3, 1837, to Jerusha 
Stiles, who was born July 18, 1819, in Vermont, the daughter of Jeremiah 
and Sibyl Stiles. Her father was the founder of Stilesville, locating there 
in 1 82 1. Mrs. Stiles died in 1828 and was the first married woman who died 
there. Mr. Stiles was married again and shortly afterward died of cholera 
at Savannah, Missouri. In March, iS>T^8, Jehu Hadley l^ought three hundred 
and twenty acres in section 11, Franklin township, which at that time w;i- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 229 

a swamp. The only arable part of his farm was covered with a heavy growth 
of timber, and many of the old settlers pronounced the farm valueless and 
predicted starvation for the owner, but they did not reckon with the industry 
and perseverance of Jehu Hadley. By incessant toil and energy he cleared 
the farm and drained the swamp, putting in two thousand rods of tile drain- 
age and four hundred rods of open ditches, in addition to building a mile of 
levee on Mill creek, which ran through the farm. It is today known as the 
Green Valley Farm and is one of the show places of the county. A fine park 
containing an amphitheatre is on the farm and for the past thirteen years the 
old settlers have held their reunions there, as many as six thousand persons 
being present on these annual occasions. J\Ir. Hadley owned, at one time, six 
hundred and fifty acres, nearly all of which he had brought under cultivation. 
In 1876 he built a beautiful brick residence, probably the most costly countr)^ 
home in Hendricks county, costing him over ten thousand dollars. He was 
widely known and well respected for his many fine (jualities of character. 
He was not only just, but a man who was generosity itself. Honorable him- 
self, he never distrusted another man, till proved unworthy of trust. He 
was strong in his likes and in his dislikes, too, and yet a charitable man who 
was always true to his friends. He died in 1891 and his wife seven years 
later. He belonged to the Christian church and his wife to the Missionary 
Baptist. 

Rusha E. Hadley was born in Danville, where she attended the public 
school, and later the State Normal, where she and her husband became ac- 
quainted. After leaving the State Normal School she taught for two vears, 
making a very creditable record as a teacher. Mr. and Mrs. Ragland have 
two children, Sibyl, age twelve, and Christine, age eight. Christine, although 
only eight years of age, is an expert little horsewoman and has been entered 
as a pony rider in girls' riding contests since she was a very small girl. 
She has already participated in four horse shows and in each she won the 
first premium. In speaking of the event at Greencastle, where she was 
entered, the Indianapolis Star said, "The entry that attracted the most atten- 
tion was one where the girl riders were under fourteen years of age. The 
prize was won by Christine Ragland of Danville, who is only eight years of 
age. The little girl rode a black Shetland pony and took the crowd by storm. 
She rode like a veteran, and, indeed she is, having taken three other prizes by 
her riding." She rode several times around the public square at break-neck 
speed and thrilled the crowd by her daring. 

Mr. and Mrs. Ragland are both members of the Missionary Baptist 



230 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

church at Stilesville and are generous in their support of their favored denom- 
ination. Since moving to Danville they have won a host of friends who ad- 
mire them for their many qualities of head and heart. They are interested 
in all public enterprises which tend to promote the welfare of the town, and 
are considered valuable acciuisitions to the society of Danville. 



A. P. W. BRIDGES, M. D. 

In this day of spefcialization the world demands experts in every line 
and he who would make the most pronounced success along any particular 
line of endeavor must concentrate all of his time, attention and energy 
on his chosen field. In the field of medicine the work of the old family 
doctor is now in the hands of a hundred different specialists, each treating 
some particular ailment and no others. There has also arise\i within the 
last twenty-five years a new field in the department of therapeutics and 
medicine and one which is of great importance. This new departure will 
not only be the means of saving the health of hundreds of thousands of 
people, but it has an influence which will affect the very life of the nation 
itself, striking as it does at the foundations of our social fabric. The home, 
the school, the industrial world and every phase of society is going to be 
changed for the better because of this new phase of the medical profession. 

Inebriety is now recognized as a disease and there has been discovered 
by Dr. Leslie E. Keeley, a treatment which, properly administered, results 
in a complete relief from the craving or appetite for alcohol and narcotics. 
Nearly half a million persons have been treated within the last twenty-five 
years and the success which has attended the use of Dr. Keeley's remedies 
has made his name a household word in thousands of homes. Eor the 
past twenty-three years there has been a branch of the Keeley Institute at 
Plainfield, Indiana, and during all but five years of that time it has been 
under the charge of Dr. A. P. W. Bridges, who has achieved a notable 
success in handling thousands of cases of inebriety and morphineism. 

Dr. Bridges, the son of Rev. M. C. and Sophia J. (Doyle) Bridges, 
was born September 27, 1856, in Owen county, Indiana. His father was 
a native of Indiana and his mother of North Carolina. Rev. Bridges was 
born near Abington, Wayne county, his ancestors having come to Indiana 
from Virginia by way of Kentucky. They settled in Wayne countv in the 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 23 1 

twenties and in the thirties moved to Owen county and lived there the re- 
mainder of their days, the father dying in 1900 at the age of seventy-five, 
the mother having passed away several years before. They reared a large 
family of children, but Dr. Bridges is the only one living. 

Dr. Bridges received a good common school education and then took 
the course in the Indiana Medical College, at Indianapolis, graduating from 
that institution in the spring of 1892. He started to practice at Cloverdale, 
Indiana, and shortly afterwards removed to Alaska, Morgan county, where 
he remained until he took charge of the Keeley Institute at Plainfield. Under 
his efficient administration the institute has made a steady growth and is now 
recognized as one of the best in the United States. In 191 2 the buildings 
were completly overhauled and put in first class condition in every particular. 

Dr. Bridges was first married to Emma F. Alverson, of Spencer, In- 
diana, in 1883, and to this union there were born five children: Ralph, who 
is a graduate of Depauw and Indiana Universities, and is no.w a professional 
chemist, at Plainfield; Alta. who is a graduate of Depauw University, and 
now a teacher in the high school, at Plainfield; and three who are still at 
home, Joyce. Willard and James. ^Irs. Bridges died in April, 1908, and 
January 7. 19 13, Dr. Bridges married ]\Iinnie Morgan, of Plainfield, to which 
union Ruth Adelaide was born, February 19, 1914. 

Dr. -Bridges is a thirty-second-degree Mason, a Shriner, and also holds 
membership in the tribe of Red Men. He is a member of the Alethodist 
Episcopal church and has been a trustee in the church for many years. He 
is a stanch Democrat and takes an active interest in the affairs of his party 
and was nominated by his party in 19 14 for the office of county clerk. 
He has been the precinct committeeman from Guilford township ever since 
he lived there. He has been identified with the Plainfield Building and 
Loan Association as its vice-president for many years. He is a member 
of the library board of Plainfield. 

It is safe to say that the work being done by Dr. Bridges is conferring 
a boon upon thousands of homes and the sphere of his influence is con- 
stantly increasing. His work is highly indorsed by men in every profes- 
sion who see in the service he is rendering to afflicted humanity the posi- 
tive means of ameliorating untold suffering and misery. Dr. Bridges is a 
widely read man and one whom it is a pleasure to meet, and his friends are 
truly numbered by the thousands. 



2^2 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

' JUDGE GEORGE W. BRILL. 

It is scarce less than supererogation in outlining the leading facts in the 
life of Judge Brill to refer to him as a lawyer in the ordinary phraseology 
which meets the requirements when dealing with the average member of the 
legal profession. He is indeed much more than eminently successful in his 
legal career, as is indicated by his long and praiseworthy record at the bar 
and his efficient service on the bench. He is a master of his profession, a 
leader among men distinguished for the high order of their legal talent, and 
his eminent attainments and ripe judgment make him an authority on all 
matters involving a profound knowledge of jurisprudence and vexed and 
intricate questions growing out of its interpretation. 

Judge George \\\ Brill, the son of William and Jeannette (Matthews) 
Brill, was born in Hendricks county, Indiana, December 15, 1859. His 
father was a native of Virginia and his mother of Scotland. William Brill 
was a millwright l^y trade and came west when a young man, settling in 
Hendricks county, Indiana. Here he lived until his death, in April, 1873. 
his widow surviving him until 1907. They were loyal and consistent mem- 
bers of the Lutheran church of Pecksburg. To Mr. and Mrs. William Brill 
were born six children : George W., the immediate subject of this sketch : 
WiUiam Henry, deceased; Rachel Jeannette, the wife of L. F. Sparks; 
Bess, who lives with her brother, and William T., who is a furniture dealer 
in Danville. 

Judge Brill was born on the farm near Center Valley, Liberty township, 
this county, and received his education in the common schools of this town- 
ship.. He finished his education by taking the course in the Central Normal 
College, at Danville, and has been granted two diplomas from that institu- 
tion. Following his graduation from the college, he taught school for four 
years, in the meantime reading law with Hadley, Hogate & Blake in Danville. 
He was admitted to the bar in June. 1883, and was in continuous practice 
until November 16, 1913, when he went on the bench of the fifty-fifth 
judicial circuit of Indiana. He formed a partnership with Col. George T. 
Harvey in 1890, which continued until he went on the bench. This firm was 
very successful in every way and was in most of the important litigation 
of the county and central part of Indiana for the past twentv years. 

Judge Brill was elected judge at the general election in November. 1913, 
on the Democratic ticket, and gave up a law practice of eighteen thousand 
dollars a year to take the judgship at three thousand five hundred. He 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 233 

did this only at the earnest sohcitation of his friends. This was his first 
office, although about twenty years ago he was the party nominee for joint 
senator of Marion and Hendricks counties, when, though he carried Marion 
county by over seven hundred, he lost his home county and was defeated. 

Judge Brill was married on November 23, 1883, to Emma L. Gregg, 
the youngest daughter of Martin and Mary Jean Gregg. Martin Gregg was 
county commissioner when the old court house was built and was a very 
estimable and substantial citizen of the county. Two children have been born 
to Judge and Mrs. Brill, one of whom died in infancy, while the other 
daughter, Gertrude Holt, is still under the parental roof. Mrs. Brill died on 
October 11, 191 3. 

Fraternally, Judge Brill is a member of the Knights of Pythias and 
has been in that order since 1882, during which time he has held every office 
in that lodge. He is also a member of the Free and Accepted Masons at 
Danville. Judge Brill is the owner of considerable real estate in the county, 
having several town properties and also farm lands scattered throughout 
this section. His career indicates what can be done by the young man who 
starts out to make his own way through life. He had no influential or rich 
friends or relati\-es to help him and can be truly called a self-made man. 



FRED CREECH. 



One of the youngest and most progressive farmers in this county is 
Fred Creech, who, although he has been a farmer only a short time, is already 
regarded as one of the coming agriculturalists of the county. He has had 
a very interesting career, during \^•hich he has traveled over a large part 
of the United States. He was born September 2. 1886, in Wolfe county, 
Kentucky, the son of Frank L. and Nancy (Riggs) Creech. His father is 
a Methodist minister and is now living at Van Wert, Ohio. His parents 
were both born in Wise county, Virginia. Fred grew up in Kentucky, and 
after receiving a good common school education, started to work on a 
farm. About ten years ago he became acquainted with a man from Hen- 
dricks county, and as a result the whole tenor of his life was changed. He 
came to this county, learned the structural iron worker's trade and then went 
to Cincinnati where he learned the marble setter's trade. He then fol- 
lowed these two trades until 1909, working in cities scattered all o^■er the 
United States. 



234 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

In 1909 he came back to this county and was married on December 28th, 
to Florence Hardwicke, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Warren Hardwicke. 
A history of the Hardwicke family is given elsewhere in this volume. To 
this happy union there has been born one son. Everett Farrell, a bright lad 
of three years. 

Mr. Creech is now farming a fine eighty-acre farm in the northeastern 
part of Marion township and is fast picking up the intricacies of the farm- 
ing profession. He is full of energy and enthusiasm and has won the re- 
spect of the entire community in which he lives. 



HIRAM T. STORM. 



Among the highly honored veterans of the Civil War, who are still 
living in Hendricks county, is Hiram E. Storm, who lost one of his legs 
twelve days after he was mustered into the service, in one of the hardest 
fought battles of the Civil War. Although he was nearly seventeen years 
of age when he enlisted, he came back and started to common school in 
order to prepare himself for some useful profession. Handicapped as he 
was, he was determined not to be a charge upon anyone and with grit and 
determination he set about to prepare himself for the profession of teach- 
ing and thirty-six years of his useful life have been .spent in teaching in 
this and other counties in Indiana. His life history is very interesting and 
instructive to the coming generation and is well worthy of mention in this 
volume. 

Hiram T. Storm, the son of Isaac and Sarah (Lunsford) Storm, was 
born in Putnam county, Indiana, November 26, 1845. Both of his parents 
were natives of Monroe county, Indiana, and when his father, Isaac, was 
about seventeen years of age, he left his home in Monroe county, because 
the surroundings of his community were such as not to be conducive to 
the best development of a young man. Nearly everyone was addicted to 
the use of strong liquor and having had a repugnance to the use of intoxi- 
cating liquors from his childhood days, he decided to settle in some place 
where he would be under a difi"erent environment. Accordingly he went 
to Putnam county and found work with a farmer by the name of Lunsford, 
who was a strong temperance man, an abolitionist and a worthy man in 
every way. It so happened that Isaac Lunsford had a daughter and, as 
it has often occurred before and since, the youthful Isaac fell in love with 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 235 

his employer's daughter, Sarah. An interesting story is connected with 
the Hfe of Peter Lunsford. When he first entered government land in 
Putnam county, he killed one hundred and forty rattlesnakes the first 
spring and got so disgusted with the farm that he sold it and bought another 
one in the same county. Isaac and his young wife, Sarah, began life under 
trnlv primitive conditions in Putnam county, and were worthy people, who 
reared to large usefulness thirteen children, four boys of whom served gal- 
lantly in the Union army during the Civil War. Isaac Storms died in 
1904, at the age of eighty-seven, while the bride of his youth is still living 
on the old home farm at the advanced age of ninety. 

Hiram T. Storm lived on the home farm until the breaking out of the 
Civil War and on August i8, 1862, enlisted in Company C, Seventy-first 
Regiment of Indiana Volunteer Infantry. The next twelve days were prob- 
ablv the most exciting which have e\-er happened in the career of Mr. 
Storm. His regiment in 1863 was transferred to the Sixth Indiana Cavalry, 
and he was rushed to Kentucky and on the 30th, twelve days after he 
was mustered in at Indianapolis, he was engaged in the battle of Richmond, 
Kentucky, one of the severest battles in that state during the whole war. 
Here he was severely wounded in the leg and in order to save his life, 
his leg was amputated. As soon as he was able to return to his home, he 
came back to Putnam county and started to school. Things must have looked 
discouraging to him at this time, but with pluck and perseverance he applied 
himself to his books with such diligence that he was soon recognized as one 
of the best educated men in his county. As soon as he applied for a teach- 
er's license he successfully passed the examination and for the next six years 
taught in Putnam county. 

In 1869, Mr. Storm moved to Eel River township, in this county, and 
bought a farm, where he made his home until 19 12. Before coming to this 
county he married the widow of William F. Harper, another gallant soldier, 
who lost his life in the Civil War. Mrs. Harper had two children by her 
first marriage, Melvin and Melvina Eva Harper, whose interesting careers 
are delineated elsewhere in this volume. After removing to this county, 
!\Ir. Storm continued teaching until 1872, when he was elected treasurer 
of Hendricks county on the Republican ticket. After leaving the office 
of county treasurer he returned to the farm and continued teaching until 
1909, having completed a total of thirty-six years in the school room. He 
has taught the children of former pupils and in fact a few grandchildren of 
former pupils. He has been very successful as a. business man and now 



236 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

owns eighty acres of land in Hendricks county, as well as his father's old 
home place in Putnam county. 

Mr. and Mrs. Storm are the parents of two children. May and Orville 
T. May was the wife of Frank West, and died in January, 1897, leaving two 
children, Lester V. and Evalina. Orville T. was born October 31, 1869. 
and after graduating from the high school at Danville attended Purdue 
University for a term, after which he returned to the old home farm where 
he has since resided. Upon his marriage, in 1898, his father gave him 
fifty acres and since that time he has added one hundred and thirty more 
to his farm in this township. He was married in 1893 to Ida West, the 
daughter of Simpson and Julia (Weddle) West. Her father was born in 
Kentucky and came here with his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Hiram West, in 
infancy. Hiram West entered land in the southeastern part of Eel River 
township and lived there until his death. Julia Weddle was born in Put- 
nam county, the daughter of Benjamin and Nancy W^eddle, who were na- 
tives of Virginia. Mr. and Mrs. Orville T. Storm have one daughter. 
Nellie, who is now attending the Central Normal College at Danville. 

Hiram T. Storm has been a member of the Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows since 1872, holding membership in both subordinate lodge and en- 
campment. He has been a life-long member of the Christian church and is 
now an elder in that denomination at Lizton. Personally, Mr. Storm is a 
man of great force of character and enjoys a high degree of popularity in 
his community, possessing, as he does, those qualities of mind and heart that 
win and retain warm friendship. 



SENATOR HORACE L. HANNA. 

Senator Horace L. Hanna, of Plainfield, Indiana, was born at Green- 
castle, Indiana, April i, 1874. His parents were Hon. John and Emma 
(Hobbs) Hanna, his father being a native of Marion county, and his mother 
of Jennings county in this state. Flis father was for many years one of the 
most prominent lawyers not only of Indiana, 1)ut of the middle West, and 
had a national reputation as a man of extraordinary ability. John Hanna was 
a member of Congress from the seventh district of Indiana, was an elector 
on the first Lincoln ticket, was appointed ])y President Lincoln as United 
States district attorney for Indiana, was a member of the territorial Legis- 



HENDKICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 237 

lature of Kansas and chairman of the judiciary committee which introduced 
the bill for the prohibition of slavery in that state. 

Senator Horace L. Hanna received a good common school and high 
school education in Plainfield. graduating from the Plainfield Academy in 
1873. His parents had moved to Plainfield when he was about eight years 
of age. After graduating from the academy at Plainfield. he worked on the 
farm for four years, and then spent one year in DePauw University. While 
in DePauw he was a member of the Sigma Chi Greek-letter fraternity, and 
has always taken an active interest in this organization of his college days. 
After leaving DePauw he taught school for one year in the country near his 
home and then became a traveling salesman for the next four years, traveling 
for the BakerA'awter Company, of Chicago. He then entered a law school 
in Indianapolis and graduated from the Indiana Law School in 1904 and 
immediately located for the practice of law at Plainfield. In 1905 he was 
elected to the lower house of the Indiana Legislature and re-elected in 1907. 
In 1909 he, was elected to the Senate from Boone and Hendricks counties, 
having served in all, through four sessions of the Legislature, the sixty- 
fourth, the sixty-fifth, the sixty-sixth and sixty-seventh sessions. Senator 
Hanna was appointed in 1909 by Governor Hanly as chairman of the legisla- 
tive committee to visit and investigate the needs of the various state institu- 
tions. While in the Legislature he took a very prominent part and was the 
author of many bills. He feels that the bill of most importance with which 
he was connected was the one making the boards of the various state institu- 
tions nonpartisan. He does not assume the entire credit for this bill, but 
was one of the prime movers in its passage. 

Senator Hanna was married to Hortense B. Moore, December 23, 
1909. She is a daughter of Patterson F., deceased, and Willie A. Moore, 
of Plainfield. He is a member of the order of Free and Accepted Masons, 
the Knights of Pythias and the United Commercial Travelers of America. 
It is interesting to note that in the list of legislative celebrities w^hich was 
published from time to time in the Indianapolis Star that Senator. Hanna 
figured in a very interesting sketch in this newspaper on February 24, 19 13. 
In this sketch he is referred to as a man who carries his point as often 
as any other Republican could carry it in tlie Indiana Senate. In fact, his 
optimistic and cheerful demeanor at all times has won for him a host of 
warm friends, who are glad to see him making a name for himself in the 
political arena of Indiana. He is rapidly building up a lucrative legal prac- 
tice in Plainfield and surrounding territory and is universally recognized 
as a man of keen analytical mind who has a good grasp of the law. 



238 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

JOHN W. ADER. 

The farmer is the bulwark of the nation and investigation has shown 
that a large majority of our best business and professional men were reared 
on the farm. Presidents of the United States and governors of our own 
fair state have often come from the rural districts. George Washington 
was a farmer and was proud of the fact; Abraham Lincoln was reared on 
a farm in Spencer county, Indiana. Probably the most popular Democratic 
governor Indiana ever had was "Blue Jeans" Williams, who prided him- 
self on being a farmer and defeated Benjamin Harrison for governor with 
the campaign cry that Harrison was a "Blue Stocking;" the Republican party 
has never had a better governor in this state than that plain, unostentatious 
farmer, James A. Mount. Verily, the farmers of to-day are the bulwark 
of the nation, the salt of the earth. 

John W. Ader, the son of Jacob and Mary (Springer) Ader, was 
born ]\Iarch 2. 1863, in Putnam county, Indiana. His father was a native 
of Putnam county and his mother was born in Schenectady, New York. 
Jacob Ader was a farmer all his life, as was his father, Solomon, before him. 
The Aders, it is believed, came originally from Ireland, Solomon coming to 
this country from Ireland with his parents, and at first settled in Virginia. 
From Virginia they went to North Carolina, and Solomon, the grandfather 
of the subject of this sketch, came from that state to Indiana with his 
family and all his possessions in a two-wheel cart. Jacob Ader died in 
1872 and his widow, some years later, married B. G. Edmundson and is 
still living at Clayton, Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Ader were the parentss 
of three children: Solomon, a farmer in Putnam county; Jacob, who died 
at the age of two; and John, the immediate subject of this sketch. 

John W. Ader was given a good practical education in the common 
schools of his township and has supplemented his early training with wide 
reading and close observation of men and events. In other words he is well 
schooled in the affairs of the business world, an education that teachers 
and books cannot give. He spent his summers on the farm while he was 
still of school age and continued to work on the farm until his marriage, 
at the age of twenty-one. His father had died when he was only nine years 
of age and this necessitated him taking considerable responsibility on his 
shoulders at an early age. 

Mr. Ader was united in marriage on September 11. 1884 to Jennie 
Shepherd, a girl with whom he had gone to school. She is the daughter of 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 239 

James P. and Margaret (Weller) Shepherd. She was born and reared 
near Air. Ader's home in Putnam county. To this happy union there have 
been born six children, four of whom are hving: Tressie Ohve, who is a 
music teacher, and hves at home; Jacob, who is a student in the School of 
Medicine, of Indiana University, will receive the degree of Bachelor of 
Science in June. 19 14. and the degree of Doctor of Medicine in 191 6. He is 
taking the full seven years" course which is prescribed by the university, 
the last three years of which is given at Indianapolis. He is a member 
of the Greek-letter fraternity of Phi Gamma Delta and the medical fraternity 
of Phi Rho Sigma; the third child of Mr. and Mrs. Ader is Shirley Florence, 
who is a graduate of the high school, at Danville, and also of both the 
scientific and the classic courses of the Central Normal College. During 
the year 19 13- 19 14 she is teaching English and art in high school at Jones- 
boro, Indiana; the youngest child is Helen, who is now a sophomore in the 
Danville high school. 

Immediately after his marriage Mr. Ader went on a farm and was suc- 
cessful from the start, and within four years was able to purchase a general 
store at Groveland, which he managed no less successfully for the next 
five years. While he was on the farm he became interested in the buying 
and selling of horses and when he went into the mercantile business he con- 
tinued to handle horses. In fact the handling of the horses interfered with 
the operation of his store, so he sold it and engaged in the buying and sell- 
ing of stock exclusively. He went into partnership with Henry Underwood 
at Groveland in Putnam county and in the next few years laid the basis of 
his present substantial holdings. In 1893 he moved to Danville where he 
continued in the same business and in the next fourteen years became known 
as one of the most substantial business men of the county. He invested 
in land and owns some of the finest farming land to be found in the state. 
He also bought town property in Danville and has recendy built one of the 
most modern and up-to-date houses in the town. In 1908 he was elected 
sheriff on the Democratic ticket, by a good majority, despite the fact that 
the county is normally Republican. His administration of the office was so 
satisfactory that he was re-elected in 1910 without any difficulty; his last 
term of office expires January i, 1913. It is safe to say that Hendricks 
county never had a more efficient and popular sheriff than John Ader. 

Mr. Ader is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, at Groveland. 
and has been a close student of Masonry for many years. He and all the 
members of his familv are devoted and consistent adherents of the Presby- 



240 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

terian church, at Danville, and contribute freely of their means to the sup- 
port of the various organizations of that denomination. Mr. Ader is a 
man who makes friends everywhere he goes and prol)ably has as wide an 
acquaintance throughout the county as any other man. Personally, he is a 
splendid specimen of manhood, more than six feet in height and tipping the 
scales around two hundred and fifty. His life has been a busy and useful 
one and no citizen in the county is held in higher esteem by his fellow citi- 
zens than Mr. Ader. His career shows what may be accomplished by the ex- 
ercise of tireless energy and upright dealings. 



JAMES E. HUMSTON. 

Whether the elements of success in this life are innate attributes of the 
individual or whether they are quickened by a process of circumstantial de- 
velopment, it is impossible to clearly determine. Yet the study of a suc- 
cessful life, whatever the field of endeavor, is none the less interesting and 
profitable by reason of the existence of this same uncertainty. In the life 
record of James E. Humston, who for many years has been identified with 
various interests in Hendricks county, Indiana, we find many qualities in 
his make-up that always gain definite success in any career if properly di- 
rected. The splendid success which has crowned his efforts has been di- 
rectly traceable to the salient points in his character, for he started in life 
at the bottom of the ladder, which he mounted unaided. He comes of a 
splendid American family, one that has always been strong for right living 
an 1 industrious habits, for education and morality, for loyalty to the national 
government, and for all that contributes to the welfare of a community, and, 
because of his success in life and his high personal character, he is clearly 
entitled to specific mention in the annals of his county. 

Among the Civil War veterans of Hendricks county, who have not yet 
answered the final roll call, is James E. Humston, who was born in Lawrence 
county, Indiana, August 13, 1844, the son of William M. and Lovina E. 
(Glover) Humston, the former a native of Tennessee and the latter of 
Kentucky. William Humston came to Lawrence county, this state, from 
Tennessee when a young man and resided in that county until his death, 
which occurred in 1872, his wife surviving him several years. Mr. and Mrs. 
William Humston were the parents of seven children, only three of whom 




JAMES E. HUMSTON 



I 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 24I 

are living, W. B., of Bedford, Indiana, Laura H., of Bloomington, Indiana, 
and James E., the immediate subject of this sketch. 

James E. Hnmston was educated in the old-fashioned schools which 
were in vogue in his day and spent his boyhood days helping his father on 
the farm. When a mere lad of seventeen, he enlisted in Company A, Sixty- 
seventh Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and served for three full 
years. He took* part in the siege of Vicksburg, in the summer of 1863, and 
participated in seventeen engagements of the war. He was twice taken 
prisoner, first at Munfordsville, Kentucky, and held at Alexander, Louisiana, 
later on, having been taken prisoner twenty-seven days after he enlisted. He 
was never sick a day during his whole service and never missed a single 
roll call, excepting during time he was in prison. He participated in the 
battle of Champion's Hill, which history says was one of the bloodiest bat- 
tles of the whole Civil War, and yet was one of the fortunate few who 
went through the whole service without being wounded in any way, or 
having his health impaired in the slightest. After the close of the war he 
came back to Lawrence county, Indiana, and remained there until 1868, 
when he went west for a short time. Upon his return to Indiana he was 
married in 1870 and came to Danville, this county, where he has since lived. 
As a .farmer he has been very successful and has accumulated a comfortable 
competence for his declining years. While in the active work of directing 
his farm he raised all of the crops common to this section of the state, and 
also added to his income by the sale of live stock. 

Mr, Humston was married February 24, 1870, to Philista T. W^ood, 
who was born and reared in Hendricks county, and to this union were born 
five children: Ora Minta, the wife of Joseph M. Miller, of Clermont, 
Indiana; Everett E., of Beech Grove, Indiana; Lee W., of Indianapolis; 
Cly R., assistant cashier of the Danville State Bank, and Hallie H., who 
lives in South Dakota. 

Mr. Humston has always taken a prominent part in Republican poli- 
tics and has served his party on several occasions in conventions. He was 
elected assessor of Franklin township for three terms, and in 1890 was 
elected recorder of Hendricks county. He is financially interested in the 
Danville State Bank and is a director in that institution at the present time. 
After his term of office as county recorder expired in 1895, he moved back 
to his farm in Washington township, but did not take a very active part in 
the management of the farm. He moved back to Danville in 1905, where 
he has since resided. 
(16) 



242 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Mr. Humston is a faithful and consistent member of the Methodist 
Episcopal church, and one of the gradually diminishing number who belong 
to the Grand Army post at Danville. His record has been one replete with 
duty well and conscientiously performed in every relation of life. He has 
been an advocate of wholesome living and cleanliness in politics as well, and 
has always stood for the highest and best interests of the community in 
which so many of his active years have been passed and.wnich has been 
honored by his citizenship. The life history of such a man shows what in- 
dustry, good habits and sound citizenship will accomplish. 



WILLIAM H. NICHOLS. 

The career of William H. Nichols has been a strenuous and busy one, 
entitling him to honorable mention among the representative citizens of his 
day and generation in the county with which his life has been so long identified. 
Although his life record is nearing its close by the inevitable fate that awaits 
all mankind, his influence still pervades the lives of a wide circle of friends 
and accjuaintances throughout the county. It is very probable that he has 
a larger speaking acquaintance in this county than any other living man, due 
to the fact that he has been identified with the office of auditor for so many 
years. As a private citizen, as a soldier in the Civil War and as a public 
official he has always been true to himself and his fellowmen and the tongue 
of calumny has never touched him. As a soldier he proved his loyalty to 
the country he loved so well and in the long marches in all kinds of situa- 
tions, on the tented fields and amid the flame and smoke of battle, where the 
rattle of musketry mingled with the deep concussions of the bursting shell. 
he was always found to be a man who could be depended upon. To such 
as he the country is under a debt of gratitude which it cannot repay and in 
centuries yet to come posterity will commemorate their l:)ravery in fitting 
eulogy and tell their deeds in story and in song. 

William H. Nichols, one of the most highly respected citizens of Hen- 
dricks county, was born near Danville, February 24, 1841. His parents 
were Thomas and Patty (Hadley) Nichols, his father being a native of 
N^irginia, who came to this county in 1821. Thomas Nichols settled southeast 
of Plainfield, where he lived for a short time and then removed to a farm 
near Danville, and later into Danville, where he lived until his death at the 
advanced age of ninety-two years. Thomas Nichols was one of the most 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 243 

important men of the county during his time. He was elected sheriff on 
three different occasions, being one of the first sheriffs ever elected in the 
county. The Black Hawk war was disturbing the settlers in 1832 and in 
that year he joined the local militia and went to the front, but did not see 
any fighting. He and his wife were members of the Methodist Episcopal 
church and he was a charter member of the Danville lodge of Free and 
Accepted Masons, being initiated at Indianapolis. Mr. and Mrs. Thomas 
Nichols were the parents of nine children, only three of whom are living: 
O. E. Nichols, of Danville; Mrs. Julia A. Harney, who taught for thirtv- 
eight years in Lebanon. Indiana, and W. H. Nichols, the immediate subject 
of this sketch. 

W. H. Nichols was reared in Danville and attended the public schools 
of this place. After finishing the course in the common schools, he became 
a student at Danville Academy and graduated from that institution. Up- 
on the outbreak of the Civil War he enlisted for service in Company B, 
One Hundred Seventeenth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and served 
with distinction until the close of his term of enlistment. When a young 
man he started as a carpenter, learning the trade from his father, but sub- 
sequently he entered a printing office, where he worked for two years. 
His first public office was that of township assessor, which he held for one 
term. Upon the expiration of his term of office as assessor, he became deputy 
auditor for three years. The next four years, from 1875 to 1879, were 
spent in the employ of the Hadley-H^oman Banking Company, of Danville. 
In 1878 he was elected county auditor and served from 1879 to 1883. 
As auditor he was very efficient and his work in this office has been recognized 
b}; e^'ery auditor from 1883 down to the present time. He was deputy 
for a time after 1883 and was then elected for two more terms as auditor, 
after which he again served as deputy auditor until January, 1912, a period 
of thirt3^-six years, and during all that time he rendered the same faithful 
and efficient service in this important office. It is probable that he holds 
the record along this line, and that no man in Hendricks countv will ever 
again hold a county office for the same number of years. 

Mr. Nichols was married in 1868 to Laura F. Cash, of Danville, and 
to this union two children were born, both of whom are deceased, and his 
wife's death occurred in June, 1899. 

Mr. Nichols has been a life-long Republican and has always taken an 
active interest in politics. Fraternally, he is a member of the order of 
Free and Accepted Masons, and a charter member of the lodge of Knights 



244 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

of Pythias at Danville. In his religious affiliations he is connected with 
the Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Nichols is a genial and unassuming 
gentleman who is spending his declining years in the city where he has 
lived all of his long and busy life. His career has been an eminently busy 
and useful one and during all of his public career no action of his has 
ever brought upon him the censure of his fellow citizens. For this reason he 
has won the admiration and respect of a large circle of friends and ad- 
mirers. 



JOSEPH N. HARGRAVE. 

The subject of this review is a representative farnrer and stock raiser 
of Clay township, Hendricks county, Indiana, and is known as one of the 
alert, progressive and successful agriculturists of this favored section of the 
Hoosier state. In his labors he has not permitted himself to follow in the 
rut in a blind, apathetic way, but has studied and experimented and thus 
secured the maximum returns from his enterprising efforts, while he has so 
ordered his course at all times as to command the confidence and regard of 
the people of the community in which he lives, being a man of honorable busi- 
ness methods and advocating whatever tends to promote the pul:)lic welfare 
in any way. 

Joseph N. Hargrave, son of Nathaniel H. and Matilda (Powers) Har- 
grave, was born in Johnson county, Indiana, November 6, 1873. Both his 
parents were natives of North Carolina and lived there until after the Civil 
War. Nathaniel Hargrave was in the Confederate service and served 
throughout the war in a North Carolina regiment. x\fter the close of the 
war Nathaniel Hargrave and his wife came to Tipton county, Indiana, 
where they rented a farm, but within a short time moved to Johnson county, 
in this state, where Joseph N. was born. After a few years' stay in John- 
son county the family moved to Tennessee, but in a short time returned to 
Tipton county, where they lived until about ten years ago. Nathaniel Har- 
grave then retired from active farm life and is making his home now with 
his children. Mr. and Mrs. Nathaniel Hargrave were the parents of eleven 
children: Susan, wife of Thomas Hendricks; Betty, who married Granville 
Cunningham; Thomas, who married Ida Gordon; John, who married Ollie 
Brown; Ida, who became the wife of Frank Winders; Dora, the wife of 
George Smith; Grover, who married Alda Graham; Arlie and Michael, both 
deceased ; Delia, the wife of John Samuels, and Joseph N. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 245 , 

Joseph N. Hargrave attended the pubHc schools of Tipton county and 
received a good practical education. He then started to work on the home 
farm and continued to assist his father until he was about twenty-six years 
of age. He then married and began farming operations for himself and 
has proved to be a very successful and enterprising agriculturist. 

Mr. Hargrave was married November 3. 1898, to Maude Johnson, 
daughter of Jesse and Phoebe (Law) Johnson, and to this marriage there 
have been born six children : Inez, Paul, Stella, Beryl, Raymond and Martha. 
Mrs. Hargrave's parents had a family of three children: Maude, the wife of 
Mr. Hargrave; Alta, who died when young, and Stella, who married Clem 
Watson. The paternal grandparents had two children, and the maternal 
grandparents had six children: Wilson, Joseph, Jesse, James, Sarah and 
Phoebe. 

Mr. Hargrave is a Democrat in politics and takes an interest in the local 
public affairs of his party. Fraternally, he is a member of the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows, while religiously, he and his wife are members of 
the Methodist Episcopal church and contribute liberally of their means to 
the support of this denomination. They are firm believers in the efficacy 
of church work and are very sympathetically inclined toward all move- 
ments which seek to better the welfare of the communitv in which thev live. 



SETH T. HURON. 



The men most influential in promoting the advancement of society and in 
giving character to the times in which they live are of two classes, to-wit, 
the men of study and the men of action. Whether we are more indebted 
for the improvement of the age to the one class or the other is a question 
of honest difference in opinion; neither class can be spared and both should 
be encouraged to occupy their several spheres of labor and influence, zealously 
and without mutual distrust. In the following paragraphs are briefly out- 
lined the leading facts and characteristics in the career of a gentleman who 
combines in his makeup the elements of the scholar and the energy of the 
public-spirited man of affairs. 

Seth Thomas Huron, son of Benjamin A. and Katharine Huron, was 
born in Washington township, Hendricks county, Indiana, June 26, 1850. 
His entire life, except for a few brief trips away, has been spent on the farm 
where he was born. He received his education in the public schools of his 



246 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

home district, supplemented by a review course in the National Normal 
School, at Lebanon, Ohio. Afterwards he taught school four years, three 
of them being in his old home district. He belongs to a family of teachers, 
his father and all his brothers and sisters having been teachers. One of 
his sisters, Mrs. A. Kate Gilbert, made it her life work, having taught in 
district and city schools, and in the normal schools at Ladoga, Danville, 
Mitchell and Marion, Indiana, and at Central City and Fremont, Nebraska. 
At the latter place she is still teaching, lacking only a year of half a century 
engaged in her chosen profession. 

August 2. 1876, Mr. Huron was married to Mary Etta Farmer, at 
Clermont, Indiana. She was the daughter of David and Sibby ( Ferree ) 
Farmer, early settlers of this township, coming to Lidiana from North 
Carolina before their marriage. Soon after their marriage they moved to 
Iowa and Airs. Huron was born in Jefferson county, in that state, October 
19, 1856. When she was but a child her father volunteered in the Thirtieth 
Iowa Infantrv, serving three years in the Civil War. After the close of the 
war he came again with his family to this county. He remained here until 
1876 when he removed to Lucerne, Missouri, where he died, October 9. 
1912, at the age of eighty-six years. In politics, Mr. Farmer was a staunch 
Republican; in religion, a firm Methodist and in every walk of life, a Chris- 
tian gentleman. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Huron have been born six children : Mrs. Mary E. 
Blair, born May 3, 1877; Frank Paul, born June 16, 1880, died March 16. 
1881 ; Mrs. Irma R. Smith, born April 30, 1882; Flora F., born December 
23. 188^. died June 15, 1894; Leroy B.. born Noveml)er 26. 1S87, and John 
T., born October 16, 1890, are yet under the paternal roof and both are 
progressive farmers. Mr. Huron, with the constant support of his wife who, 
he says, helped him to attain to all that he has and is, is one among the many 
successful farmers of Hendricks county. His farm of near two hundred 
acres, known as Maple Row farm, is situated one-half mile east of A\on on 
the traction line and is one of the most attractive farms between Indianapolis 
and Danville. He believes in clover and tile drainage as the best means of 
conservation of the soil. He is also doing what he can to help introduce 
alfalfa as one of our most important crops. He feeds what the farm pro- 
duces, selling the animal rather than the grain. Mr. Huron says he has 
always been a Republican, l)nt never much of a politician. He served a term 
on the county cc^funcil and a couple of terms as justice of the peace, I^ut 
never sought an office nor asked any man to vote for him. The member.-^ of 
this family have always shown their interest in education and have ever been 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 247 

loyal supporters of the church. The school building is on the corner of the 
farm and the Methodist church is opposite it. To this church the whole 
family have given their membership and support in all its activities. Mr. 
Huron has long served on the official board as trustee and steward, and for 
a dozen years was superintendent of its Sunday school and both he and his 
wife and their children have been among its teachers and its constant at- 
tendants. 

A family sketch for a county history should reach farther back from 
the immediate family and tell something of its ancestry. This is especially 
true if these ancestors had much to do in the early beginning" of said his- 
tory and if, throughout long lives lived in the community, they possessed 
such sterling qualities as to give their full measure of help in starting, sus- 
taining and preserving measures for the common good of such community, 
and such qualities as have influenced and will continue to influence the com- 
munity to make it a good and desirable place in which to live. It is there- 
fore proper that this sketch include something of an older, a pioneer family. 
Benjamin A. Huron, the father of the subject of this sketch, was born 
in Warren county, Ohio, December 31, 181 1. He came to Hendricks county 
in 1832 and from the government entered the same year the land now owned 
by the son. He spent the remainder of his life on this farm. In December, 
1835, ^""c niarried Katharine Harding, who came here from Kentucky with 
her parents. They began at once the making of a farm and a home to 
take the place of a dense forest. A two-room log cabin was erected in a 
small clearing near the center of the tract. These first years were vears of 
privation and hardship. The heavy timber was cut down and burned in 
huge log-heaps, the wife helping to pick and burn the brush as well as care 
for the house. In addition she helped pull, break, swingle, hackle, spin and 
weave flax and also spin and weave the wool from a few sheep and thus, in 
a measure, supply the needs of the family. The husband spent the summers 
in the clearing and the field, producing the small amount of grain re- 
quired for their own use and at one time, when a small surplus remained, 
he drove, in his farm wagon, to Madison, a hundred miles away, where he 
exchanged it for a barrel of salt and a few groceries and in a week or so 
was again safe at home. He also marketed hogs at Madison, driving them 
the distance on foot. In the early forties a settlement having formed and 
' a school being needed, Mr. Huron gave the ground for a school and most 
of the timber for a frame building and for a number of years he taught school 
in this building each winter. Again in 1858 he gave a new school-house site 
where a one-room house answ^ered the needs until 1879 when a four-room 



^4° HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



graded school buddnig was erected and five years later rebuilt after a fire 
Th,s fourth bi„ld,ng still stands, so that up to the present time the district 
school, the hope of the country," has never left the Huron farm 

On this tarrn Renjaniin and Katharine Huron together toiled for manv 
years^ fhey hved to see the wilderness transformed into a beautiful farm 
on which they reared a large family of children. Their eldest died in in- 
fancy but nme others came to bless their home, and these nine vet live 
though widely scattered. The sum of their combined ages is more ihan six 
hundred years. The eldest, George A., is police judge of Topeka Kansas 
and IS seventy-si.x years old. Frank H. is a physician'of DanvL and W iS 
B., a physician of Tipton, Indiana. Mrs. Lu A. Bennett and Miss Jennie 
Huron hve at C earwater, Florida. Mrs. Esther A. Kelsey lives at Kansa 

Re;n:r°p7'^fiMT .'"''' ''"'"'■ ^' ^^^•"°"'' ^*-''^' ^rs. Mary E. 
on the old home farm. The two oldest sons served in the army during the 
Civil War, George in the Seventh and Frank three months in the Seventh 

fi St rfo'T" '" *: '"'^"'"* '"''^"^ '"'^"'^^- P-"'' answered t 
first call for troops and was among the first in the field. In the three years 

service he was color bearer of the Seventieth and at one time the flagstaff 

was shot almost in two just just above his head. Both brothers were in many 

hard fought battles, although neither was wounded. In politics the fami v 

have been Republican ; the father was at first a Whig, but when the Repubi™ n 

party was organized in 1856 he at once joined it and remained with it'dunng 

hfe. He served his township several terms as trustee and one term as as 

sessor. February .3, 1888, he was killed by a train, on the Big Four Rai - 

road, at the age of seventy-six years. The mother remained until" ig^st 

30, 1902, when she died at the age of eighty-seven years. These two pioneers 

h r f!n rr" °" t" "T"™'^ "'"^ ''''^ '"'" ^° '""^ -d -"tributed 
their full share m making it the quiet and law-abiding place it is to-day 



EDWIN MORTON KURTZ. 

Though several years have passed since the subject of this sketch was 
transferred from the life militant to the life triumphant, he is still favor- 
ably remembered by many of the older residents of Hendricks countv where 

coun^^'R''" '' rt' "^"■''' '' °"^ °' "^^ '^^*"S business men' of the 
county. Because of his many excellent personal qualities and the splendid 



f 




EDWIN M. KURTZ 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 249 

and definite inflnence which his hfe shed over the community in which he 
hved so long and which he labored so earnestly to upbuild in any way within 
his power, it is particularly consonant that specific mention should be made 
of him in a work containing mention of the representative citizens of the 
community in a past generation. A man of high moral character, un- 
impeachable integrity, persistent industry and excellent business judgment, 
he stood "four square to every wind that blew," and throughout the lo- 
cality where he lived he occupied an enviable position among his fellow- 
men, among whom he was universally esteemed. 

The late Edwin Morton Kurtz was born in 1856 in Putnam county, 
Indiana, and died December 9, 1909. He was the son of Jacob F. and Eliza 
(Cassity) Kurtz, both of whom were also natives of Putnam county, Indi- 
ana. Jacob Kurtz was born in 1833 and was the son of Jacob and Allutia 
Kiu'tz, who emigrated from Kentucky to Putnam county in 1828. The 
father of Edwin M. Kurtz was reared as a farmer and followed this oc- 
cupation all his life. After his marriage he lived with his parents until 
their death, caring for them in their old age. Plis father was an invalid for 
more than twenty years and walked on crutches all that time. He died at 
the age of eighty-three years. The mother was active until about one year 
before her death, but during the latter period she was helpless as a little 
child, and her death occurred at the age of eighty-two. 

After the death of his father and mother Jacob F. Kurtz became the 
owner of the old home farm, and there he lived until 1878. He was married 
in March, 1855, to Eliza Cassity, who was born November 19, 1838, the 
daughter of David H. and Susan Cassity. Her parents came from Kentucky, 
settling in Putnam county, this state, in the early history of that county. 
In 1882 Jacob F. Kurtz purchased a farm in the northwestern part of Marion 
township, this county, and there he remained until his death, in 1899. He 
was a life-long Republican and he and all the members of his family were 
faithful members of the Presbyterian church. His wife is still living in 
Hendricks county. 

Edwin M. Kurtz was reared en a farm in I'utnam county, ard after 
receiving a common school educat''»r, in the district schools of that county 
his parents sent him to Lincoln University, at Lincoln, Illinois, where he 
received a college education. He came with his parents to Marion township, 
Hendricks county, in 1882, and two years later, on September 18. 1884, was 
married to Mary Florence Summers, who was born in Putnam county, the 
daughter of William C. and Mary (Lake) Summers. Her mother was born 
in 1833, on land now occupied by the city of Indianapolis, her father being 



250 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Elisha Lake, a native of New Jersey. William C. Summers, father of Mrs. 
Kurtz, was born in 1830 near Bowling Green, Kentucky, and when about 
nine years of age came with his parents to Putnam county, Indiana, where 
he grew to maturity, and followed the vocation of a farmer all his life. In 
1872 Mr. Summers moved to Kansas, locating in Rice county, that state, 
and there he remained the rest of his life, his death occurring in 1898. His 
wiie is still living there at the advanced age of eighty-one years. 

Mr. and Mrs. Kurtz lived in Hendricks county for one year after their 
marriage and, then moved to Rice county, Kansas, where they reamined for 
two years, when they returned to Hendricks county because of the fail- 
ing health of Mr. Kurtz's father and the fact that there was no one to 
manage the home farm. Mr. Kurtz continued to live at the old 
place until the death of Mr. Kurtz in 1909. They were the parents of six 
children : Blanche is the wife of Harry Page, who lives west of New Mays- 
ville. Putnam county, and they have four children, Maynard, Gerald, Kath- 
ryn and Muriel; Osie is the wife of Earl Maston, of Coatesville, and they 
have two children, Roy and Jeannette; the other four children, Lora, Lyell, 
Herschel and Kye, are still with their mother at home. The year Ijefore ^\Ir. 
Kurtz's death he built a fine, large modern home on his farm, in which Mrs. 
Kurtz and the four youngest children are now living. Mr. Kurtz was a 
very successful farmer and at his death left a highly improved farm of two 
hundred and ten acres, which is one of the most productive farms in the 
county. He was an excellent citizen in every respect, a good neighbor, kind, 
unselfish, reliable, and a man whose integrity was never questioned. His life 
was such that his children and grandchildren will cherish his name and honor 
his memorv. 



CHARLES FRANKLIN BENBOW. 

The following is a brief sketch of the life of one who, by close atten- 
tion to business, has achieved marked success in the world's affairs and risen 
to an honorable position among the enterprising men of the county with 
which his interests are identified. It is a plain record, rendered remarkable by 
no strange or mysverious adventure, no wonderful and lucky accident and no 
tragic situation. Mr. Benbow is one of those estimable characters whose 
nitegrity and strong personality must force them into an admirable ni")to- 
riety, v.hich tlieir modesty never seeks, who command the respect of their 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 25 1 

contemporaries and their posterity and leave the impress of their individuahty 
upon the age in which they Hve. 

Charles Franklin Benbow, of Clay township, was born in the county 
in which he has spent his entire life on November 2, 1867. He is the son 
of Harvey R. and Lydia (Atkins) Benbow, his father being a native of 
this county, and his mother of Kentucky. Harvey R. Benbow served his 
country nobly and well in the dark days of the Civil War and after re- 
turning home worked for his father on the home farm for about two years. 
He then married and engaged in farming on forty acres which his father 
gave him. To Mr. and Mrs. Harvey R. Benbow were born two children. 
Charles Franklin and Oscar, who married Daisy Blunk. of Clay township. 

Charles F. Benbow was given the best common school education which 
his home township afforded, attending school in the Dover school district. 
He spent his summer vacations working on his father's farm, and after 
finishing his educational training he continued to work wnth his father until 
his marriage. About three years after he purchased seventy acres of land, 
part of which is now included in the present farm where he is living. He 
has been uniformly successful in all of his transactions and has improved 
his place in the way of buildings, fencing, drainage, etc., until it presents a 
very attractive appearance. He has inaugurated a scientific system of crop 
rotation which keeps the soil of his farm up to the highest point of pro- 
ductivity. 

On December 18, 1894, Mr. Benbow was married to Nora Whicker, 
the daughter of Allen and Amanda J. (West) Whicker, and to this union 
there has been born one child, Leland W., who is still under the parental 
roof. Allen Whicker, the father of Mrs. Benbow, was a native of North 
Carolina and came to this state when a small lad with his parents. They 
located in Franklin township, this county, and in that township he received 
his education. He followed the occupation of a farmer all his life, and to 
him and his wife were born eleven children: Mary, who became the wife of 
John Bundy; George, deceased; Sinia, the wife of Louis Beasley; Simon, 
who married Nora Wright ; Dennis married Gertrude Mason ; Otto, who 
married Martha Schneider; Effie, deceased; Perman, deceased; Nora, the 
wife of Mr. Benbow and two who died in infancy. Mrs. Benbow's grand- 
parents were Frederick and Elizabeth (Cosmer) Whicker. Mrs. Benbow's 
mother died April i, 1910. 

The grandparents of Mr. Benbow were Elam and Lydia (Harvey) Ben- 
bow. Flam Benbow was a native of North Carolina and came to Hendricks 



252 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

conntv. Indiana, when a young man and here he married. To this union 
were born five children : Thirza, Nancy, Sarah. Rhoda and Harvey, the 
father of Charles F. Benbow. Thirza, deceased, married Woodson Bryant, 
also deceased; Nancy married Eli Duffey; Sarah married William Ht;nt, 
who is mentioned specifically elsewhere in this volume; Rhoda married 
George Tincher. 

Mr. Benbow has been a life-long Republican, but has never felt any in- 
clination to take an active part in politics, his agricultural interests having 
required his attention to such an extent that he has left the political game 
to others. He and his wife are members of the Baptist church, at Amo, and 
are firm believers in the efficacy of church life in its relation to the good of 
the community. Mr. Benbow was treasurer of the church for a period of 
ten years. He is a man who is vitally interested in the educational, moral 
and civic advancement of his community and takes every opportunity to 
further every movement looking toward its w^ el fare. 



ENOCH HARLAN. 



It is a pleasure to investigate the career of a successful, self-made man. 
Peculiar honor attaches to that individual who, beginning the great struggle 
of life alone and unaided, gradually overcomes unfavorable environment, 
removes one by one the obstacles from the pathway of success and by the 
master strokes of his own force and vitality succeeds in forging his way to 
the front and winning for himself a competency and a position of esteem 
and influence among his fellowmen. Such is the record of the popular citi- 
zen of Clay township to a brief synopsis of whose life and character the 
following pages are devoted. 

Enoch Harlan, a gallant veteran of the Civil War and a prominent 
farmer in Hendricks county, Indiana, for three score and ten years, was born 
in this county, October 8, 1838. He is a son of Enoch and Rachel (Osborne) 
Harlan, both natives of North Carolina. Enoch Harlan, Sr., spent the 
most of his life in the latter state, coming to Indiana after his marriage 
and locating in Franklin township, where he followed the vocation of a 
farmer. He had always been engaged in this calling with the exception of 
a short time when he worked in a gold mine in North Carolina. Enoch Har- 
lan, Sr., and his wife were the parents of eight children: Lydia, who died in 
1838; John, who married Polly McAninch, and after her death, Araminta 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 253 

McAninch ; Stephen, who married Dosia A. Johnson ; MaHnda, who married 
Jackson Ally; Mariam, who became the wife of William Holslaw ; Eliz- 
abeth, who married Benjamin Bottorff; Jesse, w^ho married Jemima Rob- 
inson ; Rachel, w4io married Madison Wright, and Enoch, the mimediate 
subject of this sketch. 

Enoch Harlan, Jr., received all of his education in the subscription 
schools of his home township, and when a mere lad engaged in the carpenter 
trade wath his brother. He was following that vocation when the Civil War 
broke out and he immediately forsook the carpenter's bench for the battle- 
field and first enlisted in Company C of the Fifty-fifth Regiment Indiana Vol- 
unteer Infantry, in which he served for three months. At the expiration of 
his first enlistment he re-enlisted in the One Hundred Seventeenth Regiment 
Indiana Volunteer Infantry and served for about nine months, and upon 
the expiration of this enlistment he was enrolled foi" the third time A^•ith 
Company H, of the Eleventh Indiana Volunteer Infantry, with which com- 
mand he served until the close of the war. His Civil War record was a 
remarkable one and yet with his modesty it is difficult to get him to say any- 
thing about it. 

After his return from the Civil War Mr. Harlan was married to Su- 
sanna E. Phillips, the daughter of Samuel and Rachel Phillips, and to this 
union were born six children, two of whom died in infancy and one, Alvin, 
who died at the age of five. The other three are unmarried and are all 
under the parental roof : Eva, Ella and Albert. 

The grandparents of Mr. Harlan reared a large family of twelve chil- 
dren : Hiram, who married Sallie Hodson; Enoch, the father of the sub- 
ject of this sketch ; John, who married Rebecca Hill ; Nathan, who mar- 
ried Rachel Jordan; Ahi and William, w^ho died in infancy; Eleazer, who 
married Rebecca Hodson; Eli; Alice, who became the wife of John Had- 
ley; Carter, who married Nancy Tates; Mary and Jesse, who married 
Elizabeth Borders. Enoch Harlan. Sr., died July 8, 1840. and his wife on 
March 14, 1871. The wife of Enoch Harlan, Jr.. died November 20, 1903. 

Mr. Harlan has been a life-long Republican and has been old enough 
to cast his vote for every Republican president from i860 until the present 
time. He has never been a seeker for any political office, l^eing content to 
devote all of his time and energy to his agricultural interests. He i-' and 
has been for many years a member of the Eriends church, and has always 
been actively interested in every movement which was inaugurated bv his 
denomination. He is still hale and hearty despite his years and enjovs life 



254 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

as befits a man who has lived a clean and wholesome life for so many years. 
His life has been so conducted that he has won the unbounded admiration 
of all of those with whom he has been associated, and because of his genial 
personality he is a welcome guest in any home in his community. 



JOHN JAY CRITTENDEN CLAY. 

One of the largest and most influential families in Hendricks county, 
Indiana, is the Clay family. They have traced their ancestry back to the 
Highland clans of Scotland, and from thence to Virginia, Kentucky and 
Indiana. Two of the most conspicuous meml^ers of this family were Henry 
Clay and Cassius M. Clay of Kentucky. Many members of this family are 
scattere'l throughout the central and western states of this country, and one 
of 'the most prominent branches of the family in the state is found in this 
county. Wherever they have been found, they are always numbered among 
the representative citizens of their respective communities. 

John Jay Crittenden Clay was born December 17, 1853, in Eel River 
township, in this county, the son of James H. and Susan (Fleece) Clay, his 
father a native of Bourbon county, Kentucky, his birth having occurred there 
Januarv 20, 18 19. James H. Clay was the son of Littleberry and Arabella 
(McCoun) Clay, and he was married July 29. 1841, to Susan Fleece, his 
marriage taking place shortly after his father and wife arrived in this 
county. They came to Indiana about 1840, settling in the southern ])art of 
Eel River township where Littleberry Clay bought a section of land. A few 
years later he went to Missouri, but James remained in this county. Susan 
Fleece was born in Boyle county, Kentucky, near Danville, and came here 
with her parents, Charles Fleece and wife, in the early history of the county. 
Her parents settled west of North Salem near Eel River where they en- 
tered government land when that part of the county was a total wilderness. 
James H. Clay followed the vocation\of a farmer for the remainder of his life 
and was a resident of this place about forty years, and here his death oc- 
curred. At one time he owned nearly a section of land, but before his 
death he divided it among his children, nine of whom grew to maturit\- : 
Mrs. Arabella Waters; Mrs. Mary Catherine Rose; Samuel C, of Lebanon; 
Mrs. Sallie Rogers, of Amo; James A., of Indianapolis; John J. C, whose 
history is here delineated: Nicholas, deceased; Arthur E.. of Indianapolis, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 255 

and Joseph F., living about six miles southwest of North Salem ; one daughter, 
Lillie, died in infancy. 

John J. C. Clay grew to manhood on his father's farm and received 
such education as was afforded by his home schools. When he was about 
eighteen years of age he learned the carpenter's trade and followed this 
vocation for the next four years. However, farming offered better op- 
portunities for financial returns and he decided to engage in agricultural 
pursuits. Early in his career he turned his attention to the buying, feeding 
and breeding of live stock, and has been one of the largest shippers in the 
county. He has gradually added to his larKled possessions until he is now 
the owner of over fifteen hundred acres of land in the northwestern part of 
Hendricks county and the northeastern part of Putnam countv. 

Early in life Mr. Clay was married to Mattie J. Walker. In fact, he 
was only a youth of nineteen when he assumed the responsibilities of mar- 
ried life. Mrs. Clay was reared in Eel River township, the daughter of 
David and Mary Walker. Her father came to this state from North Caro- 
lina. One son was born to the first marriage of Mr. Clay. Charles C, whe. 
is now living in North Salem. Mr. Clay's first wife died in 1875, and in 
1 88 1 he was married to Mary E. Ballard, the daughter of George and 
Margaret (Polk) Ballard. Margaret Polk was born in Wayne county, 
Indiana, on May 9, 1831, and came to Marion county in this state in child- 
hood with her parents. She was married June 12, 1849. to George Ballard, 
and her death occurred November 25, 1898. George Ballard was born in 
Scott county, Indiana, January 14, 1822, and moved to Marion countv in 
1834, where he lived most of the remainder of his life, following the trade 
of a carpenter. He lived a part of the time in the city of Indianapolis, but 
spent his declining years at North Salem, where his death occurred in 1912. 
He and his wife were both members of the Methodist Episcopal church. 

TVlr. and Mrs. Clay have two children living and one deceased : Edna 
Coral, born in 1882. is the wife of Taylor Owen, and lives in North Salem; 
James Henry, born in 1885, married Ina Sparks, and is a farmer in this 
township. 

Mr. Clay and his wife are both loyal and earnest members of the Chris- 
tian church, and are zealous in the support of the various organizations of 
that denomination. He has spent most of his life in North Salem, from 
which point he ships a large amount of live stock annually. Personallv, 
Mr. Clay is a man of unblemished reputation and the strictest integritv, and 
his private life has always been above reproach. He is a vigorous, as well 



256 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

as an independent thinker and has the courage of his convictions upon all 
subjects which he investigates. He is essentially cosmopolitian in his ideas. 
a man of rhe people and a fine type of the strong American manhood which 
commands the respect of all classes by reason of genuine worth. Thus he 
has so impressed his individuality upon the community as to win the con- 
fidence and esteem of his fellow citizens and become influential in leading 
them to better things. 



W. J. HOADLEY, M. D. 



The present age is essentially utilitarian and the life of every successful 
man carries a lesson which, told in contemporary narrative, is productive of 
much good in shaping the destiny of others. There is, therefore, a due 
measure of satisfaction in presenting, even in brief resume, the life and 
achievements of such men, and in preparing the following history of the 
scholarly physician wdiose name appears above it is with the hope that it 
may prove not only interesting and instructive, but also serve as an incentive 
to those who contemplate making the medical profession their life work. 

Dr. W. J. Hoadley, the oldest physician in Hendricks county, was born 
March .2, 1831, in Chatham county. North Carolina. His parents, .\bram 
and Sophia (Staley) Hoadley, came to Hendricks county, Indiana, in 1837, 
where they lived the remainder of their lives. Abram Hoadley was born in 
Bramford, Connecticut, in 1793, and began the practice of medicine in Chat- 
ham county, North Carolina, as a young man. His wife was a native of 
Randolph county, that state. After Dr. Abram Hoadley came to Hendricks 
count}^ Indiana, he practiced medicine in this and adjoining counties and was 
one of the best known men in Hendricks county at the time of his death in 
1865. When he and his family came from North Carolina to this state, 
they made the long trip in a wagon and carriage, and such was the condition 
of the roads at that time that it took them over six weeks to make the 
journey. The widow of Dr. Abram Hoadley died in 1898, at the advanced 
age of ninety-two years. Dr. Abram Hoadley and wife were the parents of 
twelve children, only three of whom are now living. Abram Hoadley, who 
lives on the old homestead farm in Washington township, this county; Mrs. 
Alvira Hornaday, who is the oldest of the family and lives with her children 
in this county, and Dr. W. J. Hoadley, the immediate subject of this review. 

Doctor W. J. Hoadley was only six years of age when his parents made 




W. J. HOADLEY, M. D. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 257 

the overland trip from North CaroHna to Indiana. He received his primary 
education in his home township schools and then spent two years in Asbury 
University. He then took up the study of medicine and, as was the custom 
in those days, read in the office of his father. Although he did not graduate 
from the Medical College of Ohio until 1866, he had practiced medicine for 
nine years before that time at Pittsboro, this county. In 1866, immediately 
after his graduation, he opened offices in Danville and has practiced there 
continuously, although he is now practically retired from the active duties 
of his profession. He is now, and has been for the past eighteen years, 
secretary of the Hendricks county board of health. 

Doctor Hoadley was married on April 11, 1861, to Louisa F. Shirley, 
the daughter of James and Demirah Shirley, a well known family^ ai 
Hendricks county, and to his marriage there were born four children : Willis 
F., who lives in central California; Eva, the wife of Nathan J. Thompson, 
of this county; Harry H., who also is a resident of California; Anna May, 
deceased, who was the wife of Benjamin Lingenfelter. Doctor Hoadley's 
wife has been dead for about twenty years. 

For more than eighteen years after the Civil War, Doctor Hoadley was 
pension examiner and was known for his absolute honesty in the conduct of 
this office. He bore an unblemished reputation for honesty and high in- 
tegrity. While active in the practice he was wholly devoted to his profession 
and no man stands higher in the community than the venerable Doctor Hoad- 
ley. He is the oldest physician in the county, both as to years and as to 
length of service. His health is excellent for a man of his age and his 
physical and mental powers are intact after a busy life of over eighty-three 
years. He has a hopeful disposition and is of an optimistic nature and has 
always made it a practice to look for the silver lining on every cloud which 
has swept across his horizon. He is a stanch member of the Christian church 
and has been one of its elders for more than twenty-five years. For many 
years he was a Mason, but now has a demit from the local lodge at Danville. 

Doctor Hoadley's father came of English ancestry, while his mother 
was of German descent. The Hoadleys trace their lineage back to the year 
1600, when there was a man by the name of Hoadle. who reared four sons, 
who married and in turn reared large families of their own. Doctor Hoad- 
ley is the sixth generation from this Hoadle of 1600. There are now about 
eighteen hundred Hoadleys in the United States alone. 

Doctor Hoadley is a remarkably strong and active man for one who has 
lived fourscore and three years, with a self-governed body and a riind ot 
(17) 



258 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Sterling quality. With a generous nature, he has been in the forefront 
among the good men of this county, leading the wonderful development that 
has marked Hendricks county the past seven decades. Few men here have 
done longer or equal service in the progress of this community. 



LINCOLN A. MASTEN. 



There is no calling, however humble, in which enterprise and industry, 
coupled with a well directed purpose, will not be productive of some measure 
of success, and in the pursuit of agriculture the qualities mentioned are 
quite essential. Among the well known and highly respected farmers of 
Hendricks county who have attained to a definite degree of success in their 
line and who at the same time have greatly benefited the community in which 
they have lived, is the gentleman to a review of whose career we now direct 
the reader's attention. 

Lincoln A. Masten, the proprietor of a one-hundred-ten-acre farm in 
Clay township, Hendricks county, was born in this county, September 21, 
i860, the son of William and Delphinia (Johnson) Masten. His father was 
a native of North Carolina, his birth having occurred there in 1832, while 
his mother was a native of Indiana, having been born here in 1833. When 
a small child, William Masten was brought from North Carolina to Indi- 
ana by his parents, and his father entered land from the government, south 
of Amo, Franklin township, and here William Masten spent his boyhood 
and was married. After his marriage his father gave him a small farm to 
start with, and being a farmer of more than ordinary ability he gradually 
added to his possessions. However, he did not always reside in this county. 
For some years he lived in Morgan county, Indiana, and for three years 
he farmed in the state of Kansas, but the love for his home state drew him 
back and he died in Greencastle, where he spent the last twenty-six years of 
his life, dying March 13, 1910. 

William Masten was married three times, first to Janie Jackson, to which 
union were born three children, namely: Ursula Ann, who ])ecame the wife 
of Simon Allen, and they have three sons ; Ellwood, who is married and is 
the father of a son and a daughter; Nathan, deceased, married Dora Cook, 
of Indianapolis, and they had a son, Otis. For his second wife William 
Masten married Delphinia Johnson, and to them were born four children, 
namely: Charles, who married Ida Ingold ; Fred, who died in 1907; Rosella, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 259 

who married Lewis Phillips, and Lincoln, the immediate subject of this 
sketch. Mr. Masten's third wife was Elizabeth Wells, of Greencastle, Indi- 
ana, who died on February 3, 1914, there being no issue to this union. The 
subject's mother had the following brothers and sisters : Snyder, who mar- 
ried Patsy Shoemaker ; Euphemia Curtis ; Sarah Shields ; Maria Wilhite ; 
Wesley was married twice, first to Mary Garrison and second to Sallie 
Bryant ; Belinda McClelland, and Jesse, who married a Miss Seaton. 

Lincoln Masten attended school in Morgan county, and when his par- 
ents went to Kansas he spent three years in the public schools of that state, 
and upon their return to Hendricks county he finished his education in the 
district schools of this county, after which he worked on the farm with his 
father until his marriage, when he purchased forty acres of land and start- 
ed farming for himself. Being a man of good sound judgment and a farm- 
er of up-to-date methods, he has been uniformly successful in all his tran- 
sactions and to-day is the owner of one hundred ten acres of fine farming 
land in Clay township. He has his farm well improved and has a fine home 
and good barns and other outbuildings which add not a little to the value 
and attractiveness of his home. 

Lincoln A. Masten was married to Rosa Sanders, the daughter of 
Oliver S. and Saluda (Shirley) Sanders, and to this union there have been 
born three children; Clarence H., Blanche G. and Sanders W. Clarence 
married Mary Derr, daughter of John Derr; Blanche married Thomas Wol- 
from. and has one son. Maynard. The paternal grandparents of Mr. i>.las- 
ten reared a family of ten children, Eli, Nathan, Hanna, Mathias, Cyrus. 
William, Manuel, John, Reuben and David. Mrs. Masten was one of two 
children born to Oliver and Saluda Sanders, her sister being Minnie. Minnie 
married Louis Wilcox, of Los Angeles. The maternal grandparents were 
Aaron and Abigail Sanders and they had a family of ten children. Abra- 
ham. William, Jesse, Oliver, Ebenezer, Mary Ann, Lucinda, Emmeline, 
Martha and Jane. Mrs. Masten's mother's parents were Richard and Jeru- 
sha Shirlev, and to them were born eleven children, Absalom, Minerva, 
Jennie, William, Mary Ann, Ruth, Saluda, Winerd, Stillwell, John and 
Benton. Absalom died at the age of twenty-two; Minerva married Joseph 
Scott; Jennie married James Chenoweth; William died at the age of nine- 
teen ; Mary Ann married Samuel Brazell ; Ruth died at the age of twenty-four ; 
Saluda is the mother of Mrs. Masten; Winerd died in infancy; Stillwell 
married Jennie Logan; John; Benton died in infancy. 

Mr. Masten has been a life-long Republican and has been very much 



26o HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

interested in politics, taking an active part in local elections. However, he 
is not a strict partisan, but reserves the right to vote for the best men in 
local affairs, regardless of political affiliations. He and the members of his 
family are adherents of the Methodist Episcopal church of Amo. Mr. Mas- 
ten has been interested in all the civic and moral movements of the com- 
munity and casts his influence in the scale in favor of all worthy causes. 



OUINCY ADAMS DAVIS. 

Among the earliest settlers of Hendricks county, the Davis family oc- 
cupy a prominent and conspicuous part. From 1835 down to the present 
time they have been important factors in the material and civic advancement 
of the county. The Davis family, of Hendricks county, trace their an- 
cestors back to one Josiah Davis, who, according to the records, was born 
about the year 1665 in Wales. The family history has recorded only one 
son of Josiah Davis, who crossed the Atlantic ocean aljout the year 1771. 
stopping first in Pennsylvania, thence, after a residence there of some years, 
he moved to Virginia and later settled near Mount Sterling, the county seat 
of Montgomery county, Kentucky. He was married four times and was the 
father of twelve children in all, six sons and six daughters. Two of these 
sons, Enoch and Nathan, with their families, were among the early set- 
tlers of Eel River township, in this county, and from these two sons was 
sprung a numerous progeny, whose descendants are now residents of Ten- 
nessee, Texas, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Iowa. Kansas, Colorado, 
California, Washington, Oregon and probably other states. 

Nathan Davis, who has been mentioned, was born in Kentucky some- 
time during the latter part gf the eighteenth century, and married Nancy 
Kidd, a native of that state After several children were born in Kentucky, 
Nathan, with his family, and his brother Encich and his family, came to 
Hendricks county and settled in Eel River township. Nathan settled east 
of North Salem, bought ]:)art of his land from the government, and became 
the owner of more land from time to time until at his death he owned about 
five hundred acres of land. Nathan Davis and wife were the parents of 
nine children: John; Walter, the father of Quincy A., whose history is herein 
presented; Quincy, William, Frank, Marion. Mrs. Louisa Hunt, 'Mrs. John 
Fleece, Mrs. Catherine Tucker and Mrs. Susan Ann Riner. 

Walter Davis, the father of Quincy A., was born December 12, 1822, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 261 

near Mount Sterling, in Montgomery county. Kentucky, and was twelve 
years of age when his parents came to Hendricks county. Here he grew to 
manhood and here he married Mary Margaret Speers, who was born near 
Danville, Kentucky, and came here about 1835 with her parents. John and 
Martha (Mitchell) Speers. They settled about one and a half miles north- 
east of North Salem, where John Speers bought land and became a large 
owner in several townships in Hendricks and Boone counties. He bought 
lowland at a time when others were choosing the highlands, believing the 
lowland would eventually become the most profitable. To Walter Davis 
by his first wife were born eight children : John, Quincy A., Lafayette, Robert, 
Charles (the last two being deceased), Martha E., Xancy A. and Frances A. 
The first wife of Walter Davis died June 16, 1861, and he then married 
Mary A. Scott, of Montgomery county, Kentucky. To this second marriage 
were born six children : Walter ; Lorenzo ; Thomas Clarence ; Edgar L. ; 
Betty L., who died at the age of five, and Mrs. Myrtle D. Hendricks, the wife 
of Edgar Hendricks, of Jamestown, Boone county. The second wife of Wal- 
ter Davis died in the summer of 1873 and two years later he married Mrs. 
Matilda (Free) South, of Danville. Walter Davis died January 11, 1893. 
in his seventieth year, a man highly respected and honored by everyone be- 
cause of his upright and unostentatious life. He was a member of the Metho- 
dist church from his childhood and so conductd his life that he was beloved by 
everyone who knew him. 

Quincy A. Davis grew up on his father's farm and after completing 
his common school education in the district schools he attended Northwes- 
tern Christian University, now Butler College, at Indianapolis, for eight 
terms, between the years of 1867 and 1870. In early manhood he clerked 
in a gas fitting and plumbing establishment in Indianapolis for three years 
and a half and also taught school for eight terms, which included one year 
at North Salem, near his home. In 1876 he moved to the farm east of 
North Salem where, he has since resided. He is a man of excellent judicial 
ability and has the entire confidence of the community. He has served as 
administrator of a large number of estates, a fact which testifies to the con- 
fidence which the people of his community have in him. For thirty years 
he has been a farmer and has kept pace with modern movements in agri- 
culture, so that his farm today presents a very attractive appearance. 

Mr. Davis was married February 8. 1872. to Betty (Linn) Scott, who 
was born near Mount Sterling. Kentucky, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. 
William Scott. Her parents came to this county early in its historv and 



262 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

lived here to a good old age. Mr. and Mrs. Davis have three children living 
and one deceased : Sylvan B. died at the age of three ; Alden has taken the 
civil service examination for railway mail clerk, having passed one exami- 
nation, another to be taken ; he married Nora Higgins and has two children ; 
Charles is in the blacksmith business at North Salem and Mary, who is 
still at home with her parents and who teaches music, having three large 
classes. 

Mr. and Mrs. Davis belong to the Church of Christ at North Salem, 
and have lived true Christian lives through all of their career. Mr. Davis 
is a kind and courteous person, a worthy follower of Him who has been 
called the "world's first gentleman." 



SILAS M. PEARSON. 



The farmer is the bulwark of the nation and investigation has shown 
that a majority of our best business men, of our best lawyers, of our best 
men of every vocation of life, have been raised on the farm. George Wash- 
ington was a farmer and was proud of the fact ; Abraham Lincoln was reared 
on a farm in the southern part of our own state. Probably the most popu- 
lar Democratic governor this state ever had w^as "Blue Jeans" Williams, who 
prided himself on being nothing but a farmer. The Republican party never 
had a better governor than that plain, unostentatious farmer, James A. 
Mount. Verily, the farmer is the bulwark of the nation, the salt of the earth. 
To be a farmer today is to be a king among men. 

Silas M. Pearson, the son of Henry and Anne (Spears) Pearson, was 
born in 1840, in Miami county, near Tro}^ Ohio. Henry Pearson was born 
in South Carolina in 1799 and came to Ohio with his parents when he was 
about twelve years of age or younger. In 1858 he came to Hendricks 
county, Indiana, where he lived the life of a farmer and where his death 
occurred in 1882. Mr. and Mrs. Henry Pearson were the parents of ten 
children : Rebecca, deceased ; Sidney, deceased ; Eunice, deceased ; William, 
deceased at the age of two years; Robert, deceased; Hiram, deceased; Silas 
M. ; John, deceased ; Henry, of Grant county, and one child who died in 
infancy. 

Silas M. Pearson received his education in Ohio, but has supplemented 
the meager education which he received in the public schools with con- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 263 

tinuous reading all his life. He was married to Melissa J. Little, daughter 
of Samuel and Rebecca (Green) Little. Samuel Little was a native of 
Washington county, Indiana, and came to Hendricks county with his father, 
Alexander Little, when he was a small boy. Alexander Little was in the 
Legislature in 1822 when the present capital of the state received its name. 
He served in the first, second, eleventh, twelfth and fourteenth sessions 
of the Legislature. Alexander Little died in 1903 and his wife in 1883. To 
Mr. and Mrs. Alexander Little were born nine children : Mrs. Sarah Craw- 
ford; Elizabeth; Joseph, deceased; Alexander, deceased; Mary Ann, de- 
ceased; Robert; one who died in infancy; Melissa and Thomas. Mr. and 
Mrs. Pearson are the parents of seven children, five of whom are living: 
Edward; John, deceased; Mrs. Laura Esarey, whose husband is a member 
of the history department of Indiana University; Mrs. Cora Card; Ada, 
deceased at four years ; Mrs. Pearl Lamy and Harry. 

When the Civil War broke out, in the spring of 1861, Mr. Pearson, 
then a young man of twent}'-one years, was seized with the same patriotic 
fervor which caused two hundred thousand of Indiana's native sons to go 
to the front, and as soon as an opportunity oft'ered itself he enlisted for the 
service. He was mustered in during August, 1861, in Company I, of the 
Eleventh Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry. His company was at- 
tached to the Army of the Cumberland, and was in the field three years and 
three months. He saw hard service in the battle of Fort Donelson and many 
other battles. At the battle of Shiloh Mr. Pearson had the good fortune to 
escape unharmed, although the men on both sides of him were shot. He was 
not so lucky in the battle of Champion's Hill, for on this bloody battle- 
field, on May t6. 1863. he was twice wounded and then taken prisoner. He 
lay on the battle field of Champion's Hill for twenty-four days and for 
eight days was without food of any kind. He remained a prisoner until 
the 30th of September, 1863. when he was paroled and then transferred to 
Company Ninety-one of the Veteran Reserve Corps, and assigned to the 
quartermaster's ofHce, at Madison, Indiana, where he remained until the 
end of his enlistment, being mustered out at Indianapolis in 1864. Imme- 
diately after being mustered out Mr. Pearson returned to his home county 
and settled down on the homestead farm south of Danville, where he 
remained until his marriage, two years later. He lived on various farms 
in the immediate neighborhood and then moved to Danville, where he re- 
mained for five years. In 1898 he moved to his present farm of one hundred 
and sixty acres, where he is still active and able to manage his farm in a 



264 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



v-ery efficient manner. He raises all the crops common to this section of 
the country and in addition gives considerable attention to the breeding of live- 
stock. As a farmer he has been very successful, because he has kept pace 
with modern methods of agriculture. 

Mr. Pearson has been a member of the Free and Accepted Masons for 
hfty years, having been initiated at Madison in this state, during the last 
years of the war. I„ politics, he has been a Republican since reaching his 
majority, but in 1912 allied himself with the Progressive party, feeling that 
the old-lme Republicans were not conducting the affairs of the nation as they 
should. He keeps well informed on all the current questions of the day and 
is able to discuss intelligently the political issues which are before the people 
Although he has always been very much interested in politics, he has never 
held any public offices, being content to devote all of his energies to the man- 
agement of his agricultural interests. He and the members of his family 
are adherents of the Presbyterian church of Danville and contribute of their 
means to its support. Mr. Pearson is a keen, alert and progressive farmer 
m every sense of the word. He has always been a great reader and this has 
made him an entertaining conversationalist. He is a quiet man. who attends 
strictly to his own affairs, a man of strict integritv and high ideals, who has 
never failed to ally himself with all enterprises which have for their object 
the improvement and betterment of the conditions in the communitv in which 
he lives. 



JULIAN D. HOGATE. 



It is universally conceded that there are three factors which are more 
potent than all others in the advancement of civilization, the pulpit the plat- 
form and the press. Of these three the press reaches places and conditions 
which the other two are never able to touch. Public opinion as voiced by the 
newspapers has as much influence in molding legislation, advancing reforms 
and eliminating corrupt politics as all other agencies put together.^ A good 
newspaper, one which stands for the best interests of the community. \ a 
blessing and the good that it can do is incalculable. It is the paper of the 
town which often is the only means of driving graft out of citv aft^airs and 
placing the government of the city in the hands of the best class of citizens. 
The editor of a good newspaper touches the dailv life of the community on 
every side and the editor who does his work honestlv. fearlesslv and conscien- 



\ 



,'«^% i 




JULIAN D. HOGATB 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 265 

tiously deserves the praise of the community in which he Hves. Such a man 
is the subject of this brief review. 

JuHan D. Hogate. the editor and proprietor of the Hendricks County 
Republican, was born in Danville. Indiana, October 14, 1868. His parents 
were Charles F. and Sarah E. (DePew) Hogate. his father being a native of 
Salem county. New Jersey, where his birth occurred June 7. 1838. He 
came to Indiana when he was nineteen years of age and settled in Danville, 
where he was employed as a clerk until the opening of the Civil War. when 
he enlisted first in the Seventh Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry for the 
three-months service and later, upon the expiration of his enlistment, he re- 
enlisted in the One Hundred Se\'enteenth Regiment Indiana Volunteer In- 
fantry as second lieutenant of Company B. He served to the end of the war 
with honor, participating in some of the fiercest battles of that great struggle. 
He was a man of marked ability and popularity and in 1864 was elected on 
the Republican ticket to the Legislature from Hendricks county. He was 
one of the organizers of the Meridian National Bank, of Indianapolis, of 
which he was cashier until 1869, when he was appointed internal revenue 
collector for the sixth district of Indiana. He held this position until his 
death, which occurred March 16. 1874. Charles F. Hogate was twice mar- 
ried, his first wife being Julia A. DePew and his second wife Sarah E. De- 
Pew, both being daughters of Jeremiah and Ann J. DePew. To the second 
union were born two children. Clair, deceased, and Julian D., the immediate 
subject of this sketch. Charles F. Hogate was a Methodist in his religious 
affiliations and always took a deep and^ abiding interest in the affairs of his 
church. In the Republican party he was for years a man to whom the party 
looked for counsel. He was a member of the Republican national conven- 
tion in 1868, which nominated General Grant for the Presidency. 

Julian D. Hogate was reared in Danville, where he received his elemen- 
tary education. After finishing the common and high school courses at Dan- 
ville, he attended DePauw University. In 1888 he became connected with the 
Danville Republican as local editor, a paper which had been established in 
1847. ^^ 1890 he purchased the establishment and since that time has con- 
ducted the paper alone. His paper is the official organ of the Republican 
party of Hendricks county and, under the able editorial management of 
editor Hogate, it has forged its way to the front until it is recognized as one 
of the leading weekly Republican papers in the central part of Indiana. 

Mr. Hogate was married October 5. 1893. ^'^ Etta B. Craven, the daugh- 



266 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ter of W. R. and Sarah E. Craven, and thej^ are the parents of two very 
promising sons, Avho are now approacliing manhood. 

Mr. and Mrs. Hogate are devoted members of the Methodist Episcopal 
church of Danville and have great faith in the efficacy of the various activities 
of the church. Mr. Hogate is a member of the order of Free and /Vccepted 
Masons and the Knights of Pythias. He has Ijeen a stanch Republican for 
many years and has served two terms as a member of the state central com- 
mittee of his party. He served also as secretary of the state Senate during 
the sessions of 1905 and 1907 and the special session of 1908. As editor of 
the party organ for the county, he has been of inestimable value to his party. 
He has not been a rank partisan, but has stood for the better elements in his 
party during all these years in which he has been at the helm. He has always 
taken an active interest in the civic affairs of his town and every movement 
which seeks to uplift the community always finds in him a hearty and sympa- 
thetic supporter. He and his wife are very hospitable ])eople, and numl)er 
their friends everywhere throughout the county. 



STEPHEN DOUGLAS NOLAND. 

Farming was the original profession of man. Through the countless 
ages which elapsed since the first tiller of the soil grew the first crop, the 
farmer has been the bulwark of all nations. Today more attention is paid to 
farming than to any other profession, and there is a reason for it. When a 
railroad thinks of expansion, it first examines crop conditions, and when a 
great insurance company has money to invest, it first examines crop condi- 
tions also. When the secretary of the treasury, Mr. McAdoo, and his com- 
mittee sought to locate the new American original bank, they examined the 
crop productions of the various bank regions. When Dun & Company pre- 
pare a general statement of business they examine crop conditions and always 
find the farmers' wealth most secure and increasing, and there is a reason 
for all of this. Land itself is the foundation of prosperity. The farmer 
not only feeds them all, l)ut acts as the balance wheel and wealth l)uilder of 
the nations and lives a more happy and contented life than his misguided 
brother. The interurban, telephone, rural mail route and automobile makes 
his farm a city improved estate. He is the final force that turns the wheels 
of factories; his land is the basis of security, the foundation of credit, the 
great factor of prosperity and constitutes ninety per cent, of our nation's 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



267 



wealth at the present time. Eliminate the farmer from Hendricks county 
and no other profession could exist. Thus it is that the farmer is the mam- 
spring of prosperity in any county and the better farmers a county has the 
greater the material prosperity which that county will enjoy. Among the 
many substantial and wide-awake farmers of Hendricks county, there is no 
one who is making more strenuous effort for the advancement of his county's 
interests today than is Stephen Douglas Noland. the present trustee of Eel 

River township. 

Stephen Douglas Noland. the son of William and Elizabeth (Under- 
wood) Noland, was born October 19, 1852. in Putnam county, Indiana. His 
father was born in Madison county, Kentucky, and grew to manhood, mar- 
ried and reared six children there. After the death of his f^rst wife, William 
Noland married Elizabeth Underwood, a native of Virginia, who had come 
to Kentucky with her parents when a small girl. In the fall of 1852, a short 
time before the birth of Stephen Noland, the family moved to Putnam 
county, this state, and temporarily located near Cloverdale. While in this 
county' Stephen D., whose history is herein presented, was born. A year 
later the Noland familv moved to Center township, in Hendricks county, and 
located near Danville on the land where the Mount Pleasant church is now 
standing. William Noland was a life-long farmer and died at a ripe old age, 
honored and respected by all of his fellow citizens. There were six children 
born to the second marriage of W^illiam Noland, of whom Stephen D. is the 
eldest; Melinda, deceased, was the wife of Marene Bonifield; Perry; Julia, 
deceased, was the wife of Walter Eastes; Mary, the wife of James Mannings, 
of Danville; John, of Indianapolis, who married Eulu Thrift. 

Stephen Douglas Noland remained on his father's farm until his mar- 
riage He was given such education as was afforded in his home neighbor- 
hood and in October, 1874, married Ella Whitenack. daughter of Abraham 
and Caroline E. (Revnolds) Whitenack. The Whitenack family origmated 
in Holland and were driven from, or rather left, the country on account of 
religious differences. They belonged to the nobility and upon coming to 
America in the colonial days they first settled in New Jersey and later emi- 
grated to Ohio, where Mrs. Noland was born. When she was a year old, 
her parents located in Eel River township, this county, between Danville and 
North Salem, where h^r father bought a farm in 1856. Here the family 
lived until her father's death in 1882. He was a farmer and during the sum- 
mer operated a threshing machine and at other times operated a tile factory, 
emploving more men in his various enterprises than any other man in the 



268 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

township. He was a life-long Democrat and at one time was nominated on 
the ticket for county treasurer, but inasmuch as his party was in a hopeless 
minority he had no chance of election. Mr. and Mrs. Whitenack reared a 
family of eight children, namely: Ella, Mrs. Noland; Llewellyn, deceased; 
Isalona, the wife of John F. Jeffries; Viola, the wife of Marshall Gardner, 
of Indianapolis; Levona, the wife of Harry Dean, of North Salem; Theresa, 
wife of G. W. Lackey, of Lawrenceville, Illinois; Oscar Odell. of Denver, 
Colorado, and Leon A., of Indianapolis. Mrs. Whitenack is still living at 
North Salem, at the age of seventy-eight years. 

After Mr. Noland's marriage, he spent two years working with his 
father-in-law in the tile factory and then engaged in farming for himself. 
In 1 88 1 he bought the farm where he now lives, two and one-half miles 
southeast of North Salem, on the Jamestown road. As a Democrat, he was 
nominated by his party for the office of township trustee and elected to this 
office in 1908. He is still holding this office by virtue of the fact that the 
1913 Legislature increased the length of the trustee's term by two years, thus 
giving all trustees in the state who were elected in 1908 a six-year tenure. 

Mr. and Mrs. Noland have reared a very interesting family of children, 
all of whom have received, or are receiving, the best educational advantages 
which it is possible for them to get. Mona. the oldest child, is the wife of 
H. F. Adams, a farmer in Eel River township, and has two children. Edna 
and Harmon; Ralph W.. who lives in West Lafayette, is now an instructor in 
machine designing, heating and ventilating at Purdue University, from which 
he graduated in 19 10 in mechanical engineering. He is a brilliant young 
man with a very promising future before him; he married ]\Iadge Holloway. 
of Lafayette; Vera is a graduate of Indiana University, completing her 
•course in 191 1. and .^he is now teaching history and English in the North 
Salem high school; Ernest D., the youngest child, is a student in Purdue 
University, where he is taking the full course in agriculture. Mr. Noland 
has always been a stanch supporter of education, believing that in the train- 
ing of the mind there lies the greatest hope for our future generations. As 
township trustee he has been interested in securing the best possible teachers 
for his district schools, and, moreover, believes in paying them the best 
salaries which the law will allow him to pay. He has seven schools under 
his charge, as well as an excellent high school at North Salem, where there 
are now seventy-five enrolled in the high school. 

Mr. Noland has been a Mason for many years and his son, Ernest, is 
also a member of that fraternal order. Sufficient has been said to indicate 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 269 

the esteem in which ]\Ir. Noland is held by the people of his township, and it 
is shown that he is essentially cosmopolitan in his ideas, a man of the people 
in all that the term implies and, in the best sense of the word, a representative 
type of the strong, virile American manhood which demands and retains 
respect by reason of his worth, sound sense and correct conduct. None have 
made better use of their talent and opportunities and today he stands as one 
of the representative men of his county and, measured by the accepted 
standard of excellence, his career has been in every way eminently honorable 
and useful and his life fraught with good to his fellowmen at large. 



WILLIAM I. GILL. 



The record of William I. Gill, who is one of the leading citizens and 
progressive men of North Salem, Hendricks county, is that of a man who, 
from a modest beginning, has, without the aid of anyone, made a comfortable 
living, secured valuable property and laid by a competency for his old age, 
and at the same time won the undivided respect of all who know him as a 
result of his clean living and evident desire to promote the community in 
which he resides. 

William I. Gill, the son of James and Jane E. (Williams) Gill, was 
born in Floyd county, Virginia, on July 21, 1847. James Gill was a brick 
layer by trade and in 1867, when William I. was twenty-one years of age, the 
family came to Indiana, settling in Eel River township, this county, where 
James Gill engaged in farming and also followed his trade of brick laying as 
opportunity presented itself, and here he lived the remainder of his life, his 
death occurring in 1876. His wife survived him several years, d}'ing in 
1887. James Gill was a member of the Masonic order and both he and his 
wiie were earnest and consistent members of the Christian church. They 
w^ere the parents of seven children who grew to maturity and three who died 
in childhood. Those who lived were William I., Amanda, John T., Eli, 
Emma, James, Alfred and Mary. 

William I. Gill was educated in the common schools of his native state, 
and early in life learned the brick-laying trade' with his father and continued 
to assist his father until the latter 's death in 1876. He then operated a 
.brick yard of his own for about fifteen years at North Salem and in the mean- 
time engaged in contracting and building. In 1891 he erected the town hall 



270 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

and opera house luiikling in North Salem. Later he built the bank building, 
which contains the Masonic hall in the upper stories, and since then has built 
most of the business, houses of North Salem. He has also built all of the 
brick school houses in Eel River township except two, and a large number 
of concrete bridges over Hendricks county. At the present time he manages 
the opera house and also owns and operates a cement tile factory at North 
Salem. As a contractor he is recognized as one of the most efficient and 
trustworthy artisans in the county, and his various buildings are a tribute to 
his skill as a workman. 

Mr. Gill was married in 1877 to Lydia M. Henry, who was a native of 
Putnam county, Indiana, and a daughter of John B. and Elizabeth (La- 
Follette) Henry, her father being a farmer of that county. To Mr. Gill and 
his first wife were born nine children: Ora, who is a bricklayer, lives at 
Indianapolis, and is the secretary of the bricklayers' union of that city; Mary, 
who became the wife of Ollie Graves, of Marion township, this county; 
Beryl, the wife of Otha Williams, of Brownsburg, who is engaged in the 
retail meat business in that place, and they are the parents of three children, 
Martha, Kenneth and Louise; Malta and Brewer are still under the parental 
roof, Malta being the telephone operator in the local exchange; Vesta is em- 
ployed in the North Salem postoffice. The mother of these children died in 
March, 1897, ^"^ in 1903 Mr. Gill married Sarah Elizabeth Bunten, a native 
of Marion township, this county. She was the daughter of Henry Harvey 
and Frances (Robbins) Bunten. Henry H. Bunten was born in Mercer 
county, Kentucky, in 1818, and came to Hendricks county, Indiana, in 1833. 
with his parents, William and Leanna Bunten. They entered government 
land near New Winchester and lived there the remainder of their lives. 
Frances Robbins was a native of North Carolina, the daughter of William 
and Leah Robbins, and came here in 1834 with her parents, who located in 
the northern part of Marion township, where her father entered government 
land. Henry Bunten was a life-long farmer and was county commissioner 
and also held other public offices of trust. He spent his entire life here near 
North Salem, his death occurring in 1899, his wife surviving him until 1902. 
Mrs. Gill lived at home with her parents until their death. 

Mr. and Mrs. Gill are both earnest and consistent members of the 
Christian church and he is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, both 
of them also belonging to the Order of the Eastern Star. Mr. Gill is a man 
of unusual business abilities and has been one of the most important factors 
in the upbuilding of his home town. He is a quiet, friendly man, always 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 2/1 

progressive and has always thrown his influence in favor of all worthy enter- 

^""''^The familv history of the LaFollettes. to which Mr. Gill's first wife 
belonged, is very interesting. The family originally came to the United 
States from France, during the time when the Huguenots were bemg perse- 
cuted and first settled in New Jersey. The one male representative of the 
family who first came to America is the ancestor of a large and influential 
familv. among whom are to be found Senator Robert M. LaFollette, of Wis- 
consin Many of the LaFollettes have been prominent in the history of this 
state and nation and the Lafollettes of Putnam county have long been one 
of the prominent families of the county. 



UNA DORIS ADAMS. 

One of the striking characteristics of the twentieth century is the advent 
of women into the professional field. It has not been many years since it was 
thought that housekeeping was the only occupation to which a woman might 
aspire and yet today we find women in all of the learned professions. It 
does not follow that the entrance of women into the professional life means 
the loss of her womanly qualities in any way. Women have made the great- 
est inroads into the teaching profession and here may be found some of the 
brightest, keenest and most charming of the sisters of Eve. Indiana has 
been foremost among the states of the Union in opening her higher educa- 
tional institutions to women, the State University at Bloomington being the 
first university to open its doors to women on an equal footing with men. 
Since 1867, when the first woman entered the portals of Indiana University, 
there have gone forth thousands of well-trained young women who have be- 
come important factors in molding the life history of the state. More than 
a score of voung women from Hendricks county have availed themselves 
of the opportunity to obtain a higher education, and among this number 
there is no one who has achieved more distinct success than has the present 
efficient superintendent of schools of North Salem. 

Una Doris Adams was born in North Salem, the daughter ot Thomas 
J and Mary (Fleece) Adams, whose histories are recorded elsewhere m this 
volume She graduated from the North Salem high school in 1898 and then 
attended the Central Normal College at Danville for two years, after which 



2/2 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

she Spent several years in teaching and in 1909 received the Bachelor of Arts 
degree from the State University at Bloomington. She had already done 
high school work before entering the State University, having taught at Rock 
Branch and North Salem. She also taught two years in the public schools 
of Newcastle, this state, before graduation at the university, and after her 
graduation she returned to Newcastle and taught one more year, then came 
to North Salem and became assistant superintendent of the public schools at 
that place, under the superintendency of Theodore F. Martin. The following 
year Professor Martin became the county superintendent of Hendricks 
county and she was elected superintendent of the schools, a position which 
she has been filling ever since. As a teacher she combines both the proper 
educational qualifications and that tact and skill which are the necessary 
concomitants of every successful teacher. She is one of the very few 
women school superintendents in the state and it is a tribute to her ability 
that she is filling the position at North Salem in such a creditable manner. 
Miss Adams is a member of the Christian church and also belongs to the 
chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star at North Salem. 



MAJOR JOSEPH B. HOMAN. 

A man who has gained more than ordinary success and whose record 
as a patriotic citizen and influential business man is recognized throughout 
the state is Joseph B. Homan. of Danville. Mr. Homan is a native of Hend- 
ricks county, Indiana, born in Washington township on September 16, 1838, 
the son of Aaron and Sibelena (Faucett) Homan. His father was a native 
of Pennsylvania and his mother of Ohio. The paternal grandfather. Fred 
Homan, and maternal grandfather, John Faucett, were l)oth soldiers in the 
War of the Revolution. Aaron Homan came to Hendricks county. Indiana, 
in 1819, locating in Washington township, and in 1848 removed to Danville, 
where he lived until his death, which occurred at the age of eighty-five years. 
By occupation he was a mechanic and millwright. The mother of Major 
Homan died 'soon after removing to Danville, about 1849 or 1850. Aaron 
Homan then married Harriett Sandusky, who also is deceased. Aaron 
Homan was the father of eight children by his first marriage, three of whom 
are still living: Mrs. Mary J. Hadley, of St. Louis, Missouri, the widow of 
N. T. Hadley; John F.. of Carroll county, Missouri, and Joseph B. 

Joseph B. Homan received a common school education solely through 



HENDRICKS COUNTY^ INDIANA. 273 

his own efforts. His mother died when he was only twelve years old and he 
was obliged to work for his board and tuition while attending school. • On 
April 24, 1 861, he enlisted in Company A, Seventh Regiment Indiana Volun- 
teer Infantry, for the three-months service and from a private became pro- 
moted to the rank of a corporal. At the expiration of this term of enlist- 
ment, he went to Iowa and there enlisted in the Thirteenth Regiment Iowa 
Volunteer Infantry, and served until after the battle of Shiloh, where he was 
severely wounded by an artillery horse running over him. He came home 
on a furlough after the accident and while home helped to recruit a company 
from Hendricks county and Marion county, which was made a part of the 
Ninety-ninth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry. He was commissioned 
captain of this company, which was mustered in as Company H. Afterward 
he was promoted to the rank of major and was finally mustered out as lieu- 
tenant-colonel, after serving three years and seven months. His company 
lost nineteen men in the battle of Shiloh. Among the engagements in which 
the subject participated during the war were the following: Phillippi, Laurel 
Hill, Carrick's Ford, Chattanooga, Dalton, Tunnel Hill, Mission Ridge, 
Graysville, Knoxville, Scottsboro, Brush Mountain, Nickajack Creek, Chatta- 
hoochee River, Decatur, Atlanta, Snake Creek Gap, Resaca, Kingston, in and 
about Dallas, Pumpkinvine Creek, Altoona, New Hope Church, Big Shanty, 
Kenesaw Mountain and Pine Mountain. Major Homan was captured at 
Atlanta and was in prison three or four months at Charleston. South Carolina, 
until exchanged at Rough and Ready, Georgia. At the clo.ie of the war. 
Major Homan came home and engaged in the dry goods business in Danville, 
although as a boy he had learned the carpenter's trade. He continued in the 
dry goods business from 1865 to 1873 ^^ Danville and then organized the 
Danville Banking Company. He was manager of the institution from its 
organization until 1884. For many years he was a large feeder and shipper 
of cattle, making large shipments to Scotland. Since 1885 he has been 
engaged in the real estate and loan business with his son. Eustace W. Homan. 
Major Homan was married in 1865 to Mary L. Ballard, of Greencastle, 
Indiana, and to this marriage there was born one son, Eustace W.. above 
mentioned. Mr. Homan is a member of the Loyal Legion, and also an active 
member of the Grand Army of the Republic. He belongs to the order of 
Free and Accepted Masons and in all these fraternal organizations he takes 
an interested and active part. Religiously, he is a Methodist in belief and a 
liberal contributor to the support of this denomination. ' In politics he is an 
ardent Republican and has voted for every Republican that has been elected 
(18) 



274 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

President. He was a delegate to the Republican national convention which 
nominated Garfield in 1880, and he was also at Minneapolis when Benjamin 
Harrison was re-nominated, and a member of the notification committee 
which went to the White House and notified General Harrison of his nomina- 
tion. He is now a member of the board of trustees of the Indiana Boys' 
School at Plainfield. Major Homan has lived to honorable ends and his 
admirable career has won for him the unqualified esteem of a host of friends. 



JOHN HENRY BUNTEN. 

The life of a farmer is one of comparative obscurity, yet such is the 
peculiar fitness of things that in no other station in life do we find men of 
sounder character and stronger principles than in the environment of the 
farm. Surrounded by nature, the farmer's life is one which offers fewer 
temptations and more facilities for developing strength than does the arti- 
ficial life of the cities. And, as in the last analysis, it is character which 
counts, so in the end the life of an honest, upright farmer, like Mr. Bunten. 
may outweigh the life of a man who occupied a much larger place in the eyes 
of the world. 

John Henry Bunten, of North Salem, was born in Marion township, 
Hendricks county, Indiana, on February 24, 1850, his father being a native 
of Mercer county, Kentucky, and his mother of Randolph county. North 
Carolina. Henry Harvey Bunten was born in 181 8 and was the son of 
William and Leanna (Wilson) Bunten. When Henry Harvey Bunten was 
a young man he and his parents came to Marion township, this county, from 
Kentucky, and here William Bunten entered government land and lived the 
remainder of his life as a farmer. He was married to Frances Robbins. 
who was born in 18 19, the daughter of William and Leah (Lamb) Robbins. 
She was a small girl when her parents left North Carolina in wagons to make 
the long trip across the Blue Ridge mountains and the Ohio river valley to 
this county, where the family entered government land in Marion township. 
Henry H. Bunten and Frances Robbins were married when they were both 
very young and lived the simple life of farmers all their lives, he dying in 
1898, and his wife two years later. Henry H. Bunten was county com- 
missioner of Hendricks county at one time, and, with his wife, was a life-long 
member of the Christian church, in which he was a deacon and elder for many 
years. Mr. and Mrs. Henry Harvey Bunten were the parents of nine chil- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 2/5 

dren,, eight of whom grew to maturity. At the present time three daughters 
and John H., whose history is here presented, are the only Hving children 
of this marriage. 

John Henry Bunten was reared on the home farm and upon reaching 
manhood was given the management of the home place. He and his sister, 
Sarah E., stayed at home, caring for their parents until their death. Sarah 
E. is now the Avife of William I. Gill, whose career is portrayed elsewhere 
in this volume. 

Mr. Bunten was married April 28, 1904, to Mrs. Pearl D. (Hadley) 
Duncan, the widow of Elmer Duncan, and the daughter of James and Jennie 
(Fleece) Hadley. James Hadley was born in 1847 ""^ Marion township, this 
county, and was the son of Edmond R. and Sarah S. (Ragan) Hadley. 
Edmond R. Hadley was born in North Carolina, the son of James C. and 
Mary (Richardson) Hadley. When Edmond R. was a small boy, his parents 
came to Hendricks county, Indiana, and located southwest of Danville, where 
James C. entered government land. On this farm James C. Hadley lived and 
died, a life-long farmer and stock raiser. Edmond R. Hadley grew up o^ 
the farm and married Sarah S. Ragan, who was born in Mercer county, 

Kentucky, the daughter of Abner and (McCown) Ragan. She came 

to this county in early childhood with 'her parents, who first settled in Put- 
nam county, but later came to Hendricks county. After Edmond R. Had- 
ley's marriage he was given a farm of forty acres by his father in Marion 
township, this county, and as the years went by he added to i,'iis until he had 
seven hundred acres of fine farming land at the time of his death in 187s. 
Edmond R. Hadley and wife were the parents of eight children, two of whom 
died in childhood. Three or four years before his death Mr. Hadley bought 
a farm in Eel River township, and here he remained for the rest of his life. 
James Hadley, the father of Mrs. J. H. Bunten, was married October 25, 
1871, to Louisa J. Fleece, a native of Eel River township and the daughter 
of John and Elizabeth (Davis) Fleece. John Fleece was a child when he 
came to this county with his parents. Elizabeth Davis was born in this 
county and was a sister of Walter Davis, the father of Ouincv A. Davis, 
whose family history is given elsewhere in this volume. Since his marriage 
James A. Hadley has followed farming pursuits in Eel River township, and 
for the past thirty-four years he has lived in North Salem. In 1901 he sold 
all of his land but twenty acres, which adjoins North Salem. He owns a 
threshing and shredding outfit and still engages in that business. Mr. Had- 
ley is a member of the Free and Accepted IMasons and the Independent Order 



276 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

of Odd Fellows, while he and his wife are l)oth members of the Christian 
church. 

Mrs. Bnnten was born in Eel River township, this county, and in 1891 
married Elmer C. Duncan, the son of George H. and Nancy (Davis) Dun- 
can. Eor two years after their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Duncan lived in 
this county, then went to Colorado, where they remained for the next seven 
years. At the time of his marriage. Mr. Duncan assisted his father in a tile 
factory, but upon his removal to Colorado he engaged in gardening and fruit 
raising. He died in June, igoo, at the age of thirty-three years, leaving 
his widow with one son, Glenn D. After Mr. Duncan's death his widow 
came back to the home of her parents and lived with them until her marriage 
to Mr. Bunten. 

After Mr. Bunten's marriage he built his present home in North Salem, 
and lived there for about four years. He then returned to the farm, but 
two years later moved back to North Salem and now rents his farm out. 
He is the owner of one hundred acres of fine farming land and also has the 
management of forty acres adjoining, which belong to his sister. 

Mr. Bunten is a stanch Republican in his political views but has never 
been a blind partisan in defense of his party. He is a member of the Free 
and Accepted Masons and he and his wife are both meml)ers of the Order 
of the Eastern Star. Religiously, their affiliation is with the Christian church, 
to which they give their earnest and zealous support. Mr. Bunten is a man 
in whom- ever} one reposes the utmost confidence, for his word is to him a 
sacred obligation and he has always been ready to assist in every good work 
and help those in need. He has a wide acquaintance throughout the northern 
part of this county, and is highly respected by all of those with whom he has 
come in contact and who know him personally. 



DR. THOMAS J. ADAMS. 

Among the men of the past generations who have been influential fact(irs 
in the life of Hendricks county, the late Dr. Thomas J. Adams occupied a 
prominent place. Doctor Adams was born September 22, 1837, in Center 
township, near Danville, and died at North Salem, this county, March 13, 
1908. He was the son of Solomon and Nancy (Griffiths) Adams. Solomon 
Adams was a native of Nicholas county, Kentucky, and in the twenties of 
the last century came to Switzerland county, Indiana, where he married. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 2'J'J 

After his marriage he came to Hendricks county, where he was one of the 
leading pioneers. 

Thomas J. Adams received an academic education at the old Thorntown 
Academy in Boone county and began the study of medicine with Doctor 
Lockhart, of Danville, as his preceptor. For several years before the war 
he taught school in Tipton, Boone and Hendricks counties and on Januarv 
2, 1864, he enlisted at Danville in Company I, Ninth Regiment Indiana 
Volunteer Cavalry, for three years. He served until he was honorably dis- 
charged in 1865, the close of the war. On the organization of his regiment 
he was appointed hospital steward and served in that capacity throughout the 
remainder of his service. During six months of this time he acted as sur- 
geon, his superior officer being absent from the regiment. His regiment 
took part in many heavy skirmishes on Hood's campaign, being in the battles 
of Columbia, Franklin, Nashville and many others. Doctor Adams helped 
to care for the wounded. At the battle of Nashville, he remained behind 
several days to help gather up the wounded and send them to hospitals. 

After the close of the war Doctor Adams returned to this county and at 
once entered Rush Medical College in Chicago, from which he graduated in 
1870. However, in the meantime he had been practicing at North Salem, 
beginning in March, 1866, after he had had one term at the medical college. 
After graduation he started to practice at North Salem and was more than 
usually successful. He was a member of the county, state and national 
medical societies and had a large medical library. 

Doctor Adams was married in April, 1867, to Mary A. Fleece, the 
daughter of John and Elizabeth (Davis) Fleece. John Fleece was born in 
Boyle county, Kentucky, the son of Charles and Mary (Harlan) Fleece. In 
1836 the Fleece family came to Hendricks county and settled in Eel River 
township. Elizabeth Davis was born near Mt. Sterling, Montgomery county. 
Kentucky, and was the daughter of Nathan and Nancy (Kidd) Davis. She 
was about fourteen years of age when her parents came to this county and 
located northeast of North Salem, where the^^ entered government land. 
While Mrs. Davis was still a small girl, her parents moved to Ladoga, where 
the father engaged in the general merchandise business for sixteen years. Then 
they moved to North Salem, and after the war her father moved to James- 
town, where he again engaged in the mercantile business until his death, about 
fiifteen years later. While living in Ladoga he served as township trustee. 

Doctor Adams continued his practice in North Salem and vicinity until 
two or three years before his death, when a stroke of paralysis necessitated 



2/8 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

him giving up his practice. He died in North Salem, March 13, 1908. 
Doctor and Mrs. Adams were the parents of seven children : Galen, Una 
and Herbert are still living with their mother at North Salem; Beulah is the 
wife of Dr. C. M. Trotter, a dentist of North Salem, with one son, Richard; 
Percy died at the age of twenty; Herman died when he was about six years 
of age; Ernest, the youngest child, is a graduate pharmacist of Purdue Uni- 
versity. 

Doctor Adams was a member of the Free and Accepted Masons and the 
Grand Army of Repul^lic, and held official positions in both. He was one of 
those strong, sturdy individuals who have contributed largely to the material 
v.^elfare of this county and was a public-spirited citizen who always stood for 
the best interests of his community. For a long term of years he was active 
in promoting the community's progress along social and moral lines, and 
consecjuently his name will long be remembered for his potent influence for 
good in this county. 



E. E. BLAIR. 



Specific mention is made of many of the worthy citizens of Hendricks 
county within the pages of this volume, citizens who have figured in the 
growth and development of this favored locality and whose interests have 
been identified with every phase of progress, each contributing in his sphere 
of action to the well-being of the community in which he resides and to the 
advancement of its normal and legitimate growth. Among this number is 
E. E. Blair, who, as a private citizen and public official in his home township, 
has won the esteem of his fellow citizens because of his blameless private 
life and his efficient public service. Some men in each community are the 
natural leaders in public affairs and among this number is Mr. Blair, whose 
training has rendered him peculiarly adapted to public service. 

E. E. Blair, ex-trustee of Washington township and successful farmer, 
was born October 13, 1865, in the township where he has lived the most of 
his life. His parents were Clark and Marium Blair, who were highly re- 
spected citizens of the community in which they lived. 

Mr. Blair received his common school education in his home schools and 
then entered Purdue University at Lafayette, Indiana, where he took an agri- 
cultural course of one year, then returning to his father's farm, remained 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 279 

there and assisted his father until he moved on to his present farm in 1895, 
He purchased it from the Walter Ross heirs and has improved this tract in 
many ways by erecting new buildings and draining and fencing it in a way 
to increase its value materially. While he raises all of the crops peculiar to 
this section of the state, he has made a specialty of hog raising and has been 
uniformly successful along this line. In his farming methods he has kept 
abreast of the times and keeps well informed upon the latest agricultural 
methods so that he may keep his farm to the highest state of efficiency. He 
is interested in all of the farmers' institutes and special short courses for 
farmers, feeling that these are things in which the farmer cannot make a 
mistake. 

Mr. Blair was married, in 1887, to Jennie Barker, the daughter of 
William and Louisa Barker, of Avon, this county. Mrs. Blair was born 
June 7, 1868, in Avon and received her education in the schools of that place. 
Mr. and Mrs. Blair are the parents of seven children : Nola, born July 10, 
1888; Earl H., born July 21, 1891; Bessie, born Decernber 29, 1892; Eddie 
E., born December 29, 1894; Everett C, born July 10, 1896; Russell B., born 
March 21, 1898, and Helen G., born January 23, 1900. All these children 
are still under the parental roof and are being given the best educational ad- 
vantages by their parents. 

Mr. Blair has always taken an active interest in Republican politics and 
in 1895 was selected by his party to make the race for township trustee and 
that he was elected to that important office shows the esteem in which he is 
held by the citizens of his township. He responded to their confidence in 
him by rendering to them and to the township faithful and efficient service 
while in the capacity of a trustee. He interested himself in the township 
schools, roads and everything which came within his jurisdiction. 

Mr. Blair has spent his whole life in the township of his nativity with 
the exception of a short time in the West, when he spent about a year on a 
ranch in Indian territory and another year with a contracting firm in Kansas 
City, Missouri. 

Fraternally, Mr. Blair is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons 
at Bridgeport, Indiana, and is actively interested in the afifairs of his local 
lodge. In every avenue of life's activities he has performed his full part 
and because of his genuine worth and high character he has enjoyed to a 
large degree the respect and confidence of his fellow citizens. 



280 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

CHARLES A. WHITE. M. D. 

No other profession has accomplished, during the last century, the prog- 
ress and development that have heen made by the medical. The man of 
original thought and action, whose text-book forms but the basis of future 
work, has ever moved forward, taking advantage of and utilizing new dis- 
coveries in the science and looking always for better methods and surer 
means to the desired end. Such a man is he whose name heads this review. 
In considering the character and career of this eminent member of the 
medical fraternity, the impartial observer will not only be disposed to rank 
him among the leading members of his profession in his locality, but also as 
one of those men of broad character, culture and mental ken who have 
terrible struggles of the Civil war. his whole career has been replete with 
honor and success. He has been actuated by the highest motives, and to the 
practice of his profession he has brought rare skill and resource, his quick 
perception and almost intuitive judgment enabling him to make a correct 
diagnosis. He has always been a close student of medical science, keeping in 
intimate touch with the latest advances along that line, and he has for this 
reason kept thoroughly abreast of the times. 

Dr. Charles A. White, one of the oldest practitioners in Hendricks county, 
was born in Canton, Washington county, Indiana. January 4. 1845. His 
parents, Maxamillian and Martha (Miles) White, removed to Hendricks 
county in the fall of 1850 and located in Liberty township, about two miles 
south of Belleville, then the largest town in the county. 

Doctor White was only five years of age when his parents came to this 
county. He was given a good common school education and at the age when 
most boys of today are in school, he enlisted in the local military company 
which was being raised in his county. Although he was only sixteen years 
of age when the Civil War opened, his excess of patriotic zeal made up for 
his lack of years, and as soon as the opportunity offered itself he enlisted in 
Company A, One Hundred and Seventeenth Regiment Indiana Volunteer 
Infantry, and served out his term of enlistment. As soon as he came back 
from the front he began the study of medicine in the office of Drs. R. C. 
Moore and L. H. Kennedy at Belleville and later enrolled as a student in 
Rush Medical College of Chicago. He was compelled to borrow the money 
with which to pay his school expenses, and for this he paid twelve per cent, 
compound interest. In the spring of 1868 he began the practice of medicine 
near Bloomington, Indiana, but remained there only about a year. On March 




'-■ r-t^/z^a^^s ^^v-^ .-vy^ 




HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 281 

15, 1869, he formed a partnership with Dr. John Dancer at South Milford. 
Indiana, which was dissolved two years later. While located at South Mil- 
ford, Doctor White took a second course of lectures at Rush Medical College 
and graduated as valedictorian of his class on February i, 1871. In the 
following April he located at Wolcottville, Indiana, in partnership with Doc- 
tor Dancer and was rapidly building up a good practice when sickness in 
the family necessitated a change. His partnership with Doctor Dancer closed 
on April i, 1873, and he at once moved to Danville, near their former home. 
He next went into practice in Danville with Dr. Henry G. Todd and they 
continued together from January i, 1874, until March i. 1877, when they 
agreed to dissolve. Doctor White then united with Dr. Wilson T. Lawson 
and they practiced together until October, 1879, since which time Doctor 
White has practiced alone. 

Doctor White was married on January 21, 1873, to Dee A. Miller, the 
daughter of Tolliver B. and Matilda (Gill) Miller, and to this union there 
have been born two children, Geraldine Max Millar, born June 14, 1880, and 
Glyndon DeLaskie Miller, born November i, 1881. 

Politically, Doctor White has been a life-long supporter of the Repub- 
lican party, in the councils of which he has been a prominent figure, and has 
frequently been a delegate to county, district and state conventions. Doctor 
White is a birthright member of the Quaker church, but at the age of twenty- 
eight years he united with the Methodist Episcopal church, of which he has 
since been a consistent member. In his fraternal relations, Doctor White 
has been a Mason since he was twenty-one years of age and is also a member 
of the Royal Arch chapter and the council of Royal and Select Masters. He 
also belongs to the Scottish Rite, thirty-second degree; to Murat Temple, 
Nobles of the Mystic Shrine; to the Knights of Pythias since 1878, and, 
from the age of twenty-one years, has been identified with the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows. He is also an appreciative member of the Grand 
Army of Republic. He is a member of several medical societies, in the pro- 
ceedings of which he is deeply interested. He was vice-president of the 
State Medical Society, president of the Seventh Indiana Councilors' District 
Medical Association, and has served as a delegate to several meetings of the 
American Medical Association. During President Harrison's administra- 
tion, he served as a member of the board of pension examiners. He has for 
many years been medical examiner for several leading life insurance com- 
panies, is local surgeon for the Big Four railroad and for years has been a 
member of the Big- Four Railroad Surgeons' Association. He has during 



282 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

the forty years of his residence in this county built up a large and lucrative 
practice and been a potent factor for good in all lines of endeavor. He has 
been a public-spirited citizen who has always made his influence felt in all 
enterprises looking toward the l)etterment of the community in which he 
lives. During his early years in this community, Doctor White took a great 
interest in horses and he was instrumental in introducing into this county a 
higher grade of horses than had formerly been bred here. Personally, the 
Doctor is unassuming and approachable, a splendid conversationalist and ex- 
cellent companion. Because of his high professional standing and sterling 
character, he is eminently deserving of the exalted position he holds in the 
esteem and confidence of his fellow men. 



JEREMIAH JASPER PAGE. 

One of the old families of Hendricks county which traces its ancestry 
back to England is the Page family, whose descendants now number thou- 
sands throughout the United States. The family name "Page" indicates 
that the family was once connected with the nobility, some members of which 
were once pages to members of the royal family. Later on some members 
of the family were given titles and received valuable concessions from the 
crown with the result that many of them became immensely wealthy. There 
is said to be an estate of several million dollars left in England by members 
of the Page family to which the American branch are justly entitled. How- 
ever that may be, the Pages in America have always been able to take care 
of themselves and have never made any effort to establish their claim to the 
Page fortune of England. 

The Pages of Hendricks county trace their ancestry directly to Peter 
Page, an Englishman who came to Virginia early in the sixteenth century. 
Peter Page lived and died in Virginia, and to him and his wife was born 
Williamson Page. 

Williamson Page grew to manhood in Lee county, Virginia, and there 
married Elizabeth McCloud, who also was a native of the same county, and 
the daughter of John McCloud and wife, natives of Iowa. In 1830 William- 
son Page and wife came to Indiana and settled first in the southern part of 
Hendricks county, where Jeremiah Jasper, whose history is herein recorded, 
was born. He entered land in Eel River township, one .mile south of where 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 283 

Jeremiah J. Page now lives, entering- two tracts of fifty-six and one-half acres 
each. He moved onto his land in the fall of 1834, built his rude log cabin of 
notched log and started in to carve his fortune out of the wilderness. At 
this time there were no roads except blazed trails from one settler's cabin to 
another; dense underbrush filled the lowlands and covered the highlands of 
the county; deer, wolves, turkey and small games of all kinds were very 
numerous, and the county was merely a hunter's paradise. Williamson Page 
had been a blacksmith in Virginia and his profession was one which was a 
very necessary accomplishment in a pioneer community. Gradually the 
farm was cleared and as the sons grew up and he had increasing assistance, 
the farm was eventually brought under cultivation. Williamson Page and 
wife were the parents of a large family of children : Nellie, Nancy, Elizabeth, 
Stephen, Andrew J., Jeremiah J., Chesley, Robert, Williamson and Demerius. 
It is interesting to note that at this time there were only three families in 
this locality, the Pages, Fleece and Zimmerman families. The Fleece and 
Zimmerman families had fifteen children each, making a total of forty chil- 
dren in the three families, and of those forty children there are only two liv- 
ing today, Jeremiah Jasper Page and Mrs. Rosena (Zimmerman) Waters. 

Jeremiah Jasper Page was reared under the pioneer conditions which 
have just been described and at the age of twenty, June 15, 1854, he was 
married to Ann Elizabeth Hypes, who was born August 18, 1838, in Bote- 
tourt county, Virginia, the daughter of Jacob and Mary fPfeffly) Hypes. 
When she was three weeks old her family came to this county from Vir- 
ginia in wagons, taking the trip of hundreds of miles through unbroken 
forests and enduring hunger and hardships of all kinds. The Hypes family 
settled in the northwestern part of Eel River township, where they entered 
government land, and here Jacob Hypes died in 1849. Ann Elizabeth was 
only fifteen years of age and her useful husband was only five years older 
when they were married and it is interesting to note the prenuptial agree- 
ment of these youthful lovers, a plan which they agreed upon before their 
wedding day. This plan, which is guaranteed to promote domestic felicity, 
they have followed for more than sixty years of wedded life and have never 
had a quarrel. This wonderful agreement, which has never been broken 
throughout sixty years of wedded life, is simply this: When either one 
becomes cross or out of humor in any way, the other is to keep still until- the 
irritability passes away and not enter into any discussions when angry. 

The useful couple bought forty acres of new timber land entirely on 
credit and in a rude log cabin this fifteen-year-old bride started up house- 



284 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

keeping. That they worked faithfully need not be told here. Within a 
feAv years they had their first forty acres paid for and were able to buy an- 
other forty adjoining it. This happened within a few years after their mar- 
riage, and it is to be remembered that when they were married they had only 
the following possessions : two beds, a horse, a cow, a few chairs, a few cook- 
ing utensils and no money, and yet this happy couple enjoyed life just as 
much as we do today with all of our modern conveniences. The table he 
made out of a plank and the meat and bread which she cooked in the fire- 
place tasted just as good to them as our porter-house steak cooked on the 
gas stove of today. 

Another chapter in the history of this interesting couple begins in 1866 
when they sold their eighty acres of land and went to Iowa at the earnest 
solicitation of the mother of Mrs. Page. After reaching Iowa, Mr. Page 
carefully examined several prospective farms and came to the conclusion 
that the safest thing for him to do was to return to Indiana. Accordingly 
they came back to this county and purchased one hundred and forty- four 
acres of land in Eel River township. His success as a farmer in this county 
shows that he did not make a mistake when he left the broad plains of Iowa 
for the rolling fields of Indiana. He has prospered to a degree which he 
little dreamed, when, as a twenty-year-old youth, he started in married life 
with practically nothing. He has added to his land holdings from time to 
time until he and his children now own two thousand acres of land. 

Mr. and Mrs. Page are the parents of eleven children: John H., of 
North Salem, who married Clarinda Davis and has four children; Mary 
Elizabeth, who married W. H. Robbins, of North Salem, whose sketch is 
delineated elsewhere in this volume; Samuel R., a farmer of this township, 
who mzirried Rebecca Murphy and has five children; Jacob, a farmer in this 
township, who married Ida Thompson and has nine children; Frank, a 
farmer of this township, who married Ora Carpenter and has two children 
living; Ellen, deceased, was the wife of Daniel Robbins and died in February, 
1912, her husband dying just a week before; they left one son; Joseph, who 
died at the age of seventeen; Belle, the wife of Amos Thompson, a farmer 
of this township, they have two children living; Cora, the wife of Ed Daven- 
port, a farmer of this township, has one child living ; Sarah Francis, and one 
other child, who died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Page have twenty-seven 
grandchildren living and twenty great-grandchildren. 

Mr. Page and his wife are both loyal members of the Christian church 
of North Salem and have been for manv years. He is a man who esteems 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 285 

honesty as the first essential to success and during his long career in the 
county he has so conducted himself that he has never been the cause of 
censure on the part of his neighbors. He has such a reputation for 
peace, that he is frequently called in to settle differences between his neigh- 
bors. Enough has been said to show the character of Mr. Page and to 
indicate the influence which he has had upon the growth of his township. 
His life has been a busy one and yet he has always found time to take his 
full share in the various public questions which concern his immediate com- 
munity. His career has been honorable in every way and such as to justly 
warrant the biographer in using that famous old saying, "This was a man." 



E. B., J. A. AND L. D. OWEN. 

Among the men of sterling worth and strength of character who have 
made an impress on the life of the locality in which they live none have re- 
ceived a larger meed of popular respect and regard than the gentlemen whose 
family name is well known throughout this section of Hendricks county, 
Indiana, E. B. and J. A. Owen, successful merchants of Amo, Indiana. Life- 
long residence in one locality has given the people an opportunity to know 
them in every phase of their character and that they have been true to life 
in its every aspect is manifest in the degree of confidence and regard in which 
they are held by those who know them. In their mercantile business they 
have shown unusual ability and have achieved a splendid success among the 
followers of- their profession. 

Eleazar B. Owen, the son of Jonathan and Asenath (Bales) Owen, was 
born near Plainfield, Hendricks county, Indiana, September 7, 1837. The 
Owens were of Scotch descent and upon coming to America settled first in 
Georgia, where the grandfather, Samuel Owen, was born and grew to man- 
hood. Samuel Owen moved from Georgia to Ohio in an early day, coming 
from that state to Indiana in 1828, settling in Hendricks county. The 
maternal grandfather was prominent in the early days as a Quaker preacher 
and traveled extensively in that capacity. He settled in Plainfield, where he 
followed the dual occupation of farming and preaching, being probably the 
first minister of the Friends church to locate in this county. He continued 
preaching and farming all of his life and in his preaching made extended 
trips throughout this and adjoining states, making one trip to North Carolina 



286 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

on horseback. He lived to the advanced age of ninety-four. Jonatlian 
Owen came to Indiana from Ohio early in life and settled in Hendricks 
county, where he lived until 1865, when he moved to Illinois, where he was 
later joined by other members of the Owen family. Before going to Illinois 
he conducted a flouring mill for a few years in Mooresville, Indiana. After 
going to Illinois, he engaged in farming and became a successful man in that 
state, his death occurring there at the age of seventy-two years. To Mr. 
and Mrs. Jonathan Owen were born several children : Eleazar B. ; Anna, the 
widow of John T. Thompson, of Amo; Samuel, who died in infancy; Rachel 
C. died single; J. A.; Jemima V. (deceased), who married John Nugent; 
Benjamin B., a fruit grower, living near Tampa, Florida; Isaac J., an under- 
taker, living in Uma. Colorado; Ida, who married Wesley Thompson, of 
Farnam, Nebraska; Mary E., married Dr. William H. White, of Amo, 
Indiana. 

E. B. Owen was reared in Hendricks, Morgan and Alarion counties, 
Indiana, and also lived for a time in Illinois. His father was in business 
in Indianapolis for about three years at one time. In 1864 he started in busi- 
ness on his own account by buying a saw mill in Amo in conjunction with 
Benjamin L. and John T. Thompson. They conducted this mill for two 
years and then sold it, after which Mr. Owen and William F. Henley pur- 
chased a store of J. G. Ralston, in Amo, and this they managed for two years, 
when they again sold out, although a short time afterward Mr. Owen and 
John V. Parker bought the same store back and continued to manage it for 
the next six years. At the end of six months Mr. Owen bought his partner 
out and continued to operate the store alone until he took his brother, J. A. 
Owen, into partnership in 1896, since which time the firm has been known 
as E. B. Owen & Company. In 1886 Mr. Owen built his present two-story 
lirick building, which, with improvements and additions, he has continued 
to occupy until the present time. He carries a large and well selected assort- 
ment of goods and by his genial manner and strict integrity has built up a 
large and lucrative business in the community. He is interested in the First 
National Bank of Amo. and is now president of that institution. 

Mr. Owen was married to Elizabeth Hunt, of Hendricks county, the 
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Amiel Hunt, and to this marriage there have been 
born four children: Florence, the wife of William Ho])kins, of Indianapolis; 
Ora Lela, who resides at home and is a teacher of music by profession; 
Myrtle, who is also a music teacher, and Nettie E., a teacher in the high 
school at Plainfield. Mr. Owen's mother is still living, at the advanced age 



f 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 287 

of ninety-six years, and is remarkably active and well preserved for a woman 
of her years. Mr. Owen himself has always led a clean and active life and, 
at the age of seventy-six, he enjoys good health and is as active physically 
and mentally as men of fifty. 

J. A. Owen, a brother of E. R. Owen and a member of the firm of E. B. 
Owen & Company, was born in Plainfield, Hendricks county, Indiana, Janu- 
ary 2, 1850. His boyhood days were spent in Hendricks and Morgan 
counties, Indiana, and in Illinois. He completed his education in Grand 
Prairie Seminary in Iroquois county, Illinois. In 1875 he came from Illinois 
to Amo, Indiana, and entered his brother's store as a clerk, where he con- 
tinued until he became a partner in 1896. For several years his brother. E. 
B. Owen, was in poor health and not able to be in attendance at the store, 
and during his absence J. A. managed the business. 

J. A. Owen was married October 13, 1881, to Laura A. Swaim, of 
Hendricks county, the daughter of Thomas and Elmira Swaim. Mrs. 
Owen's parents came from North Carolina to Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. J. A. 
Owen are the parents of six children: Mrs. John Stark, of Clinton, Indiana; 
Mrs. Don Garrison, of Amo, Indiana; Wilbur B., of Indianapolis, and two 
who are still at home. Edith and Dorothy. 

Fraternally, Mr. Owen is a member of the time-honored order of Free 
and Accepted Masons, and is, as are all the members of the family, a loyal 
adherent of the Friends church. 

Leslie Dayton Owen, the son of J. A. Owen, was born September 30, 
1890, in Amo, Indiana, and received his education in the Amo schools, 
graduating from the local high school. After leaving school he entered the 
employ of the Terre Haute & Eastern Traction Company, where he remained 
for one year. He then became a clerk in the store of his father and uncle, 
where he is still employed. Fle was married on June 2. 19 13, to Ruth 
Stan ley, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Oscar Stanley, of Coatesville, this 
county. His wife's father is a merchant in Coatesville. Leslie Owen is a 
member of the Masonic order and a young man of more than ordinary 
ability, with the promise of a bright future before him. Wilbur Owen also 
graduated from the Amo high school and since that time has held some posi- 
tion with the Terre Haute & Eastern Traction Company, at the present time 
being employed at the Terminal ticket office in Indianapolis. He is a member 
of the Knights of Pythias, Uniform Rank, also of the Masonic order. 

E. B. Owen is one of the oldest, if not the oldest, merchant in Hendricks 
county now living, having commenced in 1867. 



288 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

LOUIS W. ARMSTRONG, M. D. 

Professional success comes from merit. Frequently in commercial life 
one may come into possession of a lucrative business through inheritance or 
gift, but in what are known as the learned professions advancement is gained 
only through painstaking and long-continued effort. Prestige in the healing 
art is the outcome of a strong mentality, close application, thorough mastery 
of its great underlying principles and the ability to apply theory to practice 
in the treatment of diseases. Good intellectual training, thorough pro- 
fessional knowledge and the possession and utilization of the c|ualities and 
attributes essential to success have made the subject of this review emment 
in his chosen calling and he stands today among the scholarly and enterprising 
physicians in a county noted for the high order of its medical talent. 

Dr. Louis W. Armstrong, a man of exceptionally high intellectual and 
professional attainments, was born in New York city September 21, 1875. 
His parents were Robert W. and Eudocia E. (Muller) Armstrong, both of 
whom were natives of Baltimore, Maryland. His father was a dentist, 
but retired from this profession early in life and devoted his energies to 
literary work. He came west in 1849, but always retained his home at 
Baltimore, where his death occurred in 1902, his wife having died in 1898. 
Dr. Robert Armstrong and wife were the parents of seven children, six of 
whom are still living: William R. and Harry J. live near Baltimore, where 
they have a country home; Gelston H. is an electrical engineer with the 
Carnegie Company, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Mrs. George F. Ludington 
lives at Baltimore, where her husband is in the packing business ; Adelaide R. 
lives in Baltimore, but at present is traveling in Europe; Mrs. Wade H. Free, 
of Anderson, Indiana, whose husband is a prominent lawyer of that city, and 
was secretary of the Indiana Senate in 1913. 

Doctor Armstrong was given an excellent education, all of his elemen- 
tary and college training being received in the Baltimore schools. He re- 
ceived his degree of Doctor of Medicine from the University of Maryland, 
graduating in the class of 1900. He was a resident interne at the university 
hospital before his graduation, after which he became the first assistant 
resident interne and later resident physician of Bay View Hospital at Balti- 
more, after which, for a period of ten years, he was on the surgeons' staff 
at the Franciscan Hospital at Breckenridge, Minnesota, and part of this time 
was chief surgeon. During all this time he was division surgeon of the 
Great Northern Railway Company. He left the state of Minnesota and 




LOUIS W. ARMSTRONG, M. D. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 289 

came to Danville, Indiana, in June, 19 12, and bought out the office and prac- 
tice of Doctor O'Brien. Since then he has built substantial additions and 
improved his hospital until he now has one of the finest private hospitals 
in the state. He specializes in surgery and has been remarkably successful 
along this line. Though comparatively a newcomer in Danville, he has 
rapidly forged to the front, and now occupies a distinct position both as a 
public-spirited citizen and as a physician of more than local repute. 

Doctor Armstrong was married June 8, 1904, to Louise E. Hyser, 
daughter of Edward R. and Susan Hyser, of Breckenridge, Minnesota. Her 
father was a native of Boston, Massachusetts, and her mother of Germany. 
To this happy marriage there have been born two children, Robert W. and 
Margaret S., aged eight and seven respectively. Doctor Armstrong is a 
member of the Free and Accepted Masons, the Order of the Eastern Star, 
Knights of Pythias, Ancient Order of United Workmen and Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows. He is also a member of the county, state and 
American medical associations and takes a deep interest in the affairs of all 
associations which concern his chosen field of endeavor. As a surgeon he is 
a member of the Clinical Congress of Surgeons of America, the greatest 
organization of its kind in the world. He and his wife are loval and con- 
sistent members of the Methodist Episcopal church and contribute liberally 
of their substance to its support. 



ARCHIBALD A. FIGG. 



The gentleman to a review of whose life the reader's attention is here 
respectfully directed is recognized as one of the energetic, well known busi- 
ness men of Hendricks county, Indiana, who, by his enterprise and pro- 
gressive methods, has contributed in a material way to the commercial ad- 
vancement of the locality where he lives. In the course of an honorable 
career he has been successful in the manifold lines to which his efforts have 
been directed and, enjoying distinctive prestige among the representative men 
of his community, it is eminently proper that attention be called to his achieve- 
ments and due credit be accorded to his worth as an enterprising citizen. 

Archibald A. Figg. one of the widest known and most popular busi- 
ness men of Hendricks county, Indiana, was born February 12, 1866. in 
Floyd township, Putnam county, Indiana, the son of William H. and Louisa 
(19) 



290 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

(Miller) Figg. his father l)eing a native of Shelby county, Kentucky, and 
his mother of Putnam county, Indiana. William H. Figg came to Putnam 
county with his father, Asbury Figg, when he was a lad of fourteen years 
and the family settled in Floyd township, that county. Asbury Figg lived 
in that county until his death, at the age of eighty years. Mr. and Mrs. 
W. H. Figg still live in Clay township, Hendricks county, and are among 
the oldest and most highly respected citizens of the community in which they 
have lived for so many years. William H. Figg lived in Putnam county 
until about twenty-five years ago, when he removed to Hendricks county, 
where he has continued to follow the occupation of a farmer. W. H. 
Figg was an ardent member of the Methodist Episcopal church all his life 
and in his political affiliations he adhered to the Prohibition party. Mr. 
and Mrs. W. H. Figg were the parents of six children: Laura, the wife of 
John H. Summers, of this county; Archibald A., the immediate subject of 
this sketch; John S., of Indianapolis; James W., of Danville; Ida B., wife 
of Ote Hunt, of Coatesville, Indiana; Ella died in infancy. 

Archibald A. Figg was born, reared and grew to manhood on his 
father's farm, and received his education in the district schools of his home 
township, while early in life he was initiated into all the mysteries of farm- 
ing. At the age of twenty-five years he began to farm for himself, and 
for a number of years he farmed in the immediate neighborhood of the 
old homestead. In 1898 he was elected sheriff of Hendricks county upon the 
Republican ticket and so efficient and popular was his administration that 
he secured the nomination in 1900 and a re-election. He was the first man 
for twenty-two years in Hendricks county to serve two terms, as there had 
been no man in the county for that length of time previous to his re-election 
who had been elected for more than one term. Before he served his county 
as sheriff and most of the time since then he has been more or less engaged 
in the auctioneering profession. He is a member of the Indiana Auctioneers" 
Association and was president of the association for two terms. Since 
leaving the sheriff's office he has been engaged in the livery business and 
within the last three years he has been in the automobile business as well. 
He is now agent for the Studebaker and Ford cars and has been a very 
successful agent for the companies manufacturing those cars. His twelve 
years of experience as an auctioneer and four years as sheriff has enabled 
him to call more people by their names than any other man in the county. 
He is a man of magnificent physique and one who attracts attention where- 
ever he goes. His genial personality makes itself felt in all his auctioneer- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 2gi 

ing audiences and this fact is probably the real cause of his remarkable suc- 
cess on the block. 

Mr. Figg was married November 23, 1913, to Mrs. Ada B. (Smith) 
Thompson, the daughter of Mr. and ]\Irs. McKindry Smith. Mr. Figg is 
a prominent member of the Knights of Pythias and has had the honor of 
holding every chair in the subordinate lodge of that fraternal order. He is 
familiarly known throughout the county as "Colonel," and his optimistic 
disposition and genial manner with his friends have made him one of the 
best known and best liked men in the county. His sterling uprightness in 
all of his business transactions through the many years in which he has 
been engaged in business has won for him the unlimited confidence and 
regard of all those with whom he has had business relations. The world 
has too few men who shed sunshine around them, and were there more such 
men as Colonel Figg the world would be brighter and bappier. 



SAMUEL B. ENSMINGER. 

The men most influential in promoting the advancement of society and 
in giving character to the times in which they live are two classes, to-wit, 
the men of study and the men of action. Whether we are more indebted 
for the improvement of the age to the one class or the other is a question 
of honest difference of opinion. Neither class can be spared and both should 
be encouraged to occupy their several spheres of labor and influence, zealously 
and without mutual distrust. In the following paragraphs are briefly out- 
lined the leading facts and characteristics in the career of a gentleman who 
combines in his makeup the elements of the scholar and the energy of the 
public-spirited man of affairs. Devoted to the noble and humane work of 
teaching, he has made his influence felt in the school life of Hendricks 
county, Indiana, and is not unknown to the wider educational circles of the 
state, occupying as he does a prominent place in his profession and standing 
high in the esteem of educators in other than his own particular field of en- 
deavor. 

Samuel B. Ensminger, one of the oldest teachers of Hendricks county, 
Indiana, was born August 3, 1849, on a farm in Center township, this 
county, one mile northeast of Danville. His parents were Samuel J. and 
Mary Ann (Megee) Ensminger, his father being a native of Maryland and 



292 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

his mother of Kentucky. Samuel J. Ensminger came to Hendricks county, 
Indiana, when a young man and taught school in Crawfordsville, Montgomery 
county, Indiana, for a short time, and then came to Danville, where he followed' 
the same profession. Upon the discovery of gold, in California, in 1849, 
he was seized with the same fever which actuated thousands of other men 
and went to that state, where he remained for the next twenty-two years. 
While in California he followed the occupation of a miner most of the time 
and made his headcjuarters at Placerville. In 1871 he came back to Indi- 
ana and later went to Tennessee, where he died at Murfreesboro, at the age 
of sixty-three years. His wife died December 29, 1871. Mr. and Mrs. 
Samuel J. Ensminger were the parents of five children: Melville C, de- 
ceased; one who died in infancy; Henry B., deceased, who was a soldier 
in the One Hundred Seventeenth Indiana Regiment and later in the One 
Hundred Forty-Eighth Regiiyient; Marshall L., deceased, and Samuel B., 
the immediate subject of this sketch, w^ho is the youngest of this family 
and the only one now living. 

Samuel B. Ensminger was born on August 3, 1849, and, as his father 
left in May of that year for California, and did not return until 1871, he was 
past twenty-one years of age before he ever saw^ his father. He received a 
good education in the public schools of his county and later took a course 
in the academy at Danville. Being of a studious turn of mind, he w-as in- 
clined toward the teaching profession and for nineteen years taught school 
in Center township, this county. During all of these years he farmed in 
the summer months and was equally successful in both occupations. His 
joint income from his farming operations and his teaching enabled him to in- 
crease his land holdings until he has become one of the most substantial farm- 
ers of his township. He eventually retired from the teaching profession 
and devoted all of his time to his agricultural interests, and continued to 
operate his farm until 19 10, wdien he sold his farm and removed to Dan- 
ville to spend the remainder of his days. 

Mr. Ensminger was married October 26, 1876, to Amanda Worrell, 
daughter of William and Martha (Wilson) Worrell. She was born in 
Washington township, this county. Her father was a farmer who came from 
Virginia. He was a great man for church and upright living; was often 
administrator and guardian. He had a family of thirteen children, of whom 
Mrs. Ensminger w^as the youngest. Two children have been born to Mr. 
and Mrs. Ensminger: Charlotte E., wife of Vernon Rudd, who works in 
the First National Bank of Danville, and Frederick DeWitt. an attorney 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 293 

of Danville, but now with the Prest-O-Lite Company, of Indianapolis. Fred- 
erick is a graduate of the University of Michigan. 

Mr. Ensminger is allied with the Republican party and has served his 
party on more than one occasion in conventions. He has been the assessor 
of Center township and for five years and three months was trustee of the 
same township. He has also been ditch commissioner for Hendricks county. 
In all of his official work he proved to lie an efficient and faithful administra- 
tor of the duties which he was called upon to perform. The Ensminger 
family are all members of the Presbyterian church of Danville and take 
an active interest in the various organizations of that denomination. Fra- 
ternally, Mr. Ensminger is a member of the Knights of Pythias of his 
home town. He is a jovial gentleman whom it is a pleasure to meet, and one 
who makes friends with all classes of people. In his capacity as a public 
official he was one of the most popular men who ever held office in Hen- 
dricks county. He is very widely known throughout the county, and has a 
large circle of warm friends, who esteem him for his record as a teacher 
and as a public official. It is probable there is no one, not even the minister, 
w^ho comes as close in touch with the life of the community as does the 
school teacher, and in the nineteen years in which he taught in his home town- 
ship he was brought closely in touch with life in all its phases. He has 
always been a practical and methodical man. as all members of the teaching 
profession usually are, has never known such a thing as idleness, and it can 
truly be said that he has been one of the most potent factors for good in the 
community in which he has spent so many of his years. 



THOMAS C ROSE. 



The race of life is like a horse race; if one is properly started with 
suitable grooming, such as a good education and proper home training, he 
will lead in the race in after years and enjoy every moment of existence. 
Such home influences were thrown around Thomas C. Rose in his early years. 
Both father and mother were people of intelligence, religious instincts and 
high ideals, and their son has endeavored to uphold the honor of the family 
during his entire career, and Marion township has no more highly respected 
citizen or industrious farmer. As a gallant veteran of the Civil War he well 
merits an honored place in the history of this county. 



294 ' HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Thomas C. Rose, a retired veteran of the Civil War, now Hving in North 
Salem, was born in Marion township, this county, in 1840, and has spent 
nearly seventy-five years within the limits of this comity. He is the son of 
Lewis A. and Flora (Vannice) Rose. Lewis A. Rose was born in Mercer 
county, Kentucky, in 1801, the son of Charles and Mary (Reese) Rose. 
Charles Rose was born October 6, 1778, and his wife, Mary Reese, was 
born February 4, 1779. Lewis A. Rose married Flora Vannice August 11, 
1825, and to this union were born ten children. About the year 1827 Lewis 
A. Rose and family came to Indiana and settled in Marion township, this 
county, where they spent the remainder of their lives. Lewis and his wife 
were members of the Presbyterian church, and at his death he owned two 
hundred and forty acres of land in Marion township. Mr. and Mrs. Lewis 
A. Rose were the parents of nine children. Two of the boys, Lewis and 
James, died in the Civil War, and another, Charles, died in his boyhood days. 
Thomas C, whose history is herein portrayed, is the only one of the six sons 
who is living. 

Thomas C. Rose stayed on the home farm until the opening of the Civil 
War and in 1861 enlisted in Company A, Fifty-first Regiment Indiana Volun- 
teer Infantry, and participated in various battles in Kentucky, Tennessee and 
Alabama. He was mustered out in 1863, because of ill health, being almost to- 
tally disabled at the time of his discharge. After regaining his health, he mar- 
ried Mary C. Clay in 1866. She was born in Putnam county, Indiana, and was 
the daughter of James Henry and Susan (Fleece) Clay. 

After his marriage,. Mr. Rose farmed for one year on his father's place 
and then came to Eel River township where he began operations on his own 
farm of one hundred and seventy acres, and continued to reside there until 
about 1900, when he moved into North Salem and retired from active work. 
He now rents his farm, but gives it his careful oversight. 

Mr. and Mrs. Rose have one son, Webster C, who was born in 1877. 
He is married and is engaged in the poultry business in the state of Oregon. 
Mr. Rose has always been a very careful business man and has accumulated 
his competence through his own individual eft'orts. He has carried forward 
to careful completion whatever he undertook and his business methods have 
always been in strict concomitance with the standard ethics of business life. 
His career presents a notable example of those qualities of mind and char- 
acter which overcome obstacles and win success, and his example is eminently 
worthv of imitation bv the coming generation. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 295 

FREDERICK NEWTON WRIGHT, M. D. 

. The art of healing has been practiced from the beginning of time and 
today there is no profession which offers more chance and better opportunities 
for alleviation of human suffering than does the medical profession. It is 
literally true that the physicians of this country hold its life in their hands, 
and the conscientious physician is he who does his duty the most scientihcally 
and with the greatest sympathy. It is now an acknowledged fact that there 
is a therapeutic value in the hand clasp and in the smile of the physician and 
the most successful physician is he who successfully combines a magnetic 
smile with his healing drugs. 

Frederick Newton Wright was born on June 22, 1878, in Indianapolis, 
Indiana, and is a son of Levi and Louisa (Martin) Wright. Levi Wright 
was a native of Salem, Washington county, Indiana, where he was born in 
1834. His boyhood days were spent in that county at Salem, and on reach- 
ing manhood he entered the ministry of the Methodist Episcopal church and 
followed this noble profession until his death on July 4, iSQI- ^^t many 
years he preached at Ben Davis, and helped to build the church in that place. 
His wife was also a native of Washington county, Indiana, and is now living 
in Hazelwood, Hendricks county, Indiana, having remarried after her hus- 
band's death. Mr. and Mrs. Levi Wright were the parents of five children: 
Dr. Francis Marion Wright, of Indianapolis; William L., of Indianapolis; 
Edwin Miles, who lives at Kokomo, Indiana; Arthur L., of Indianapolis, 
and Dr. Frederick N., of Hazelwood. 

Frederick N. Wright spent his boyhood days in the city of Indianapolis 
and finished the common school course and later graduated from Shortridge 
high school in that city. He then entered the medical department of Indiana 
University, graduating in the spring of 1905, and immediately located at 
Hazelwood, Hendricks county, Indiana, for practice, and in the nine years 
which he has- spent here in the active practice of his profession, he has built 
up a large and lucrative patronage. Doctor Wright has the necessary opti- 
mistic disposition which should be a part of every successful physician's equip- 
ment and this, coupled with his undoubted technical training, makes him one 
of the best physicians of the county. 

Politically, Doctor Wright is a Progressive, but on account of his large 
practice he has not had time to take any prominent part in the game of 
politics. He and E. V. Milhon helped to install the Improved Order of Red 



^9^ HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

^trafn::::;:!. "^ '-' '- ^-^^ -- '-"- — °^ '^^ «^'-- 

fh. H^""' .?'*'.'t,!r"^'" ""' """''^ °" "='>' "8. 1905. to Mamie May 

of W h t' ""; ""' "'"^^'""^ ('^^«^) A^--. »ho were native^ 

of Washington county, Indiana. 

re.a..ec, as one of the co.in, ^y:::::f:;'^'2Zn:^Z2:' '"' " 



JUDGE THOMAS J. COFER. 

vearJ'^r "^ ^'T^-f ''™ "''°'' "'"^ '^^^'^^ "^'^ *^'* '"^ b«" for many 
years closely .dent.fied with the history of Hendricks co.nity. Indiana 

Throughout the years his life has been one of untiring activity and it "as 
been crowned with a degree of professional success attained by comparatively 
few who asp,re to eminence in their chosen calling. Years of conscientiou's 
work as a lawyer have brought with them not only increase of practice and 
reputation, but also that growth in legal knowledge and that w'de and ac- 
curate judgment the possession of which constitutes marked excellence in the 
profession. By a straightforward, honorable course Mr. Cofer built up a 
large and lucrative legal business and, financially, has been proportiona ely 
successful. H,s hfe affords a splendid example of what an American youtli 
plent,f.tlly endowed with good common sense, energy and determination, can 
accomplish when accompanied by good moral principles. He achieved a 
splendid record at the bar at an age when most men are merely starting out 
on their hfe work, for, from the beginning, he was intensely methodicaf and 
unswervingly persistent in search of the true light and of the essentials of 
the legal foundation and sources of legal conception and thought holdine 
devoutly to the highly embellished record of equity and the sure certain in 
vmcible methods of practice. Therefore, success could not help crownin<^ his 
efforts and attracting to him public recognition and appreciation 

Judge Thomas J. Cofer. lawyer, old soldier, public-spirited citizen and 
a friend of every one m Hendricks county, was born September 2 18^6 three 
and one-half miles north of Danville, this county. His parents, Stephen and 
Milanda (Ashbrook) Cofer, were both natives of Kentucky, his father com 
ing to this county about 1831, and lived here the remainder of his life 
Stephen Cofer was a plain and unostentatious farmer, who died at the a..e 




^^t^. il^JTlXilflifa'Tis tS3i-^ jV^f 



C 




OJ^^M^^ 




HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 297 

of sixty, his widow surviving him many years, her death occurring at the 
advanced age of ninety-four years. Stephen Cofer and wife were the par- 
ents of eight children, only three of whom are now living: Mrs. Xellie 
Woods, of Oregon, Mrs. Nancy Riddle, of Kansas, and Judge T. J. Cofer. 

Judge Thomas J. Cofer was born, reared and practically educated on 
the farm. The district schools of his day were very rudimentary, but his 
thirst for knowledge was such that he insisted on continuing his education. 
He therefore entered the Danville Academy and continued his education at 
Asbury University, and would have graduated from that institution had not 
the Civil War interrupted his career. With the first call for troops in the 
spring of 1861, Judge Cofer enlisted in the Sixteenth Regiment Indiana 
Volunteer Infantry for one year, and immediately upon the expiration of his 
term of enlistment he joined the Seventh Regiment of Indiana Volunteers. 
He was in the battle of Port Republic, where he was wounded in the shoulder, 
captured and thrown into prison, where he remained until he was paroled 
six months later. He then came home to recuperate, but as soon as he was 
able to go to the front again he enlisted in 1863 in the Ninth Regiment Indi- 
ana Cavalry, with which command he served until he was mustered out in 
September, 1865. He participated in the battles of Pulaski, Franklin, Nash- 
ville, Spring Hill, Rennell's Hill, Sugar Creek and many others. Immedi- 
ately after the close of the war Mr. Cofer returned to Hendricks county, and 
was engaged for a short time in the mercantile business, studying law in the 
meantime. In 1872 he was admitted to the bar and has practiced in the 
courts of this county continuously since that time. He first entered into 
partnership with Judge J. G. Adams and later with Judge Newton M. Taylor. 
Some time afterwards he entered into partnership with Judge C. C. Hadley. 
which partnership was terminated in a few years and, until he was appointed 
judge of the circuit court in 1889, he practiced alone. Governor Mount ap- 
pointed Judge Cofer as judge of the circuit court in 1889 to succeed Judge 
John V". Hadley, who was elected to the supreme court at that time. He 
served two years as an appointee, and was then elected for six years on the 
Republican ticket, serving in all eight years. After leaving the bench he 
formed a partnership with Z. E. Dougan, his son-in-law, and the firm of 
Dougan & Cofer is still practicing in Danville. 

Judge Cofer was married November 9, 1865, to Mary S. Scearce, the 
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. W. J. Scearce, of this county. Of the six chil- 
dren who were born to this marriage, four died in infancy, the two living 



298 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

being Mrs. Z. E. Dougan and Mrs. Dr. Thomas Barker, both of Danville. 
Mrs. Judge Cofer died in December, 1902. 

Judge Cofer is a member of the Free and Accepted Alasons, the Grand 
Army of the Republic and the Loyal Legion. His career has indeed been a 
long and useful one in this county and has been marked with success in every 
particular. He is a man who is popular with every one, because of his cheer- 
ful disposition and charming personality. Lie can be truly called one of 
nature's noblemen. 



ROSCOE R. LEAK. 



Among the younger generations of Hendricks county farmers is Ros- 
coe Leak, whose grandfather was one of the early settlers of the county. 
He is a fine type of the modern farmer who takes advantage of all the latest 
ideas in. scientific agriculture and has the education to properly apply them. 
By a course which has been characterized by industry and perseverance he 
has established a reputation for good business methods and sound judgment 
in all his transactions. 

Roscoe R. Leak, the son of James Hilary and Margaret (Leach) Leak, 
was born September 18, 1884, in Union township, this county. James Hilary 
Leak was also a native of this county and is the son of James L. and Amanda 
(Buzzard) Leak. James L. Leak was born in Kentucky in 181 6, and came 
here about 1834 with his parents, James and Elizabeth (Vermillion) Leak. 
James Leak, the father, was the son of Robert Leak. James was born in 
Culpeper county in 1787 and came to Bracken county, Kentucky, in 1795. 
Elizabeth Vermillion was born in 1786 on the present site of Washington, 
D. C. Robert Leak and his wife, Susan, were born in England at about the 
close of the Revolutionary War. James H. Leak was born in this township 
in 1852 and spent his life up until 1909 on the farm where he was born. 
Margaret Leach, the wife of James Leak, was also a native of Hendricks 
county and was born in this township in 1865, the daughter of James ]\L and 
Elizabeth (Hamilton) Leach. She was married to James H. Leak on Octo- 
ber 18, 1883. Mr. and Mrs. James H. Leak are the parents of two children, 
Roscoe, and Denie, who married George H. Dungan, of Urbana, Illinois. 
James H. Leak and his wife are now living in Lizton. 

Roscoe R. Leak spent his boyhood days on the homestead farm and 
received his education in the schools of his township and the Lizton high 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 299 

school. After his graduation from the high school he entered the Central 
Normal College at Danville, graduating from the scientific course of 
that institution in 1906. At the age of twenty-five he married and began 
farming on the old homestead farm of one hundred and fifty-five acres, 
where he is still residing. He w^as married on September 15, 1909, to Min- 
nie Noe, the daughter of John C. and Elizabeth (Selmire) Noe. John C. 
Xoe was born in Clark county, Indiana, near Charleston, and his wife was 
a native of the same county. Mr. and Mrs. Noe are the parents of four 
children: Minnie, the wife of Mr. Leak, Henry, Nellie and May. To Mr. 
and Mrs. Leak has been born one daughter, Margaret. 

Mr. Leak is a member of the Knights of Pythias at Lizton and he and 
his wife are both adherents of the Christian church, in which denomination 
Mr. Leak is an elder at the present time. He is a Republican in politics and 
takes an intelligent interest in the political questions of the day. Mr. Leak 
is a progressive farmer in every sense of the word and uses his brains as 
well as his brawn in his farming. He is a quiet and unassuming man in de- 
meanor, yet decisive and firm in standing for what he believes to be the 
right thing. He is eminently utilitarian, and force of character, firmness of 
purpose and unswerving integrity are among his chief characteristics. 
Through his persistent efforts he has made for himself a place in connection 
with the productive energies and activities of his locality. 



WILLIAM ROBERT DAVIDSON. 

This is an age in which the farmer stands pre-eminently above any 
other class as a producer of wealth. He simply takes advantage of the 
winds, the warm air, the bright sunshine and the refreshing rains and, ap- 
plying his own hands and skill to nature's gifts, he creates grain, hay, live 
stock, etc., all of which are absolute necessaries to the inhabitants of the 
world. Nature does much for the husbandman, so much, indeed, that it is 
often a question whether he fully appreciates what is thus done for him. 
Of course he must make proper use of his brain and his muscle, must not 
quail at obstacles and sit down and repine if things go wrong; on the con- 
trary, he must ever be up and doing, with a heart for any fate. Such a man 
is William Robert Davidson, of Eel River township, one of the leading 
farmers in this locality and a man who has refused to permit obstacles to 
down him. 



300 HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 

William Robert Davidson, the son of Daniel N. and Elizabeth (David- 
son) Davidson, was born in North Salem, Hendricks county, Indiana, May 
14, i860. His father, Daniel N., was a son of Silas and Elizabeth (Stam- 
per) Davidson, and was born Septem1)er 6, 1832. in Breathitt county, Ken- 
tucky. Shortly after his birth, his parents moved to this state and settled 
about tw^o and one-half miles northwest of North Salem, but a year later 
moved across in Montgomery county and entered land in the southeastern 
part of Clark township. Silas Davidson and wife lived there until 1855. 
then moved to Iowa and spent the remainder of their lives there. Daniel 
N. Davidson grew to manhood in this county and married Elizabeth David- 
son, a native of this county and the daughter of Samuel and Susan (Dent) 
Davidson. Her parents were natives of Kentucky who had come here early in 
the history of the county. After Daniel N. Davidson was married, he and his 
wife went to Iowa with his parents, but three years later returned and located 
in North Salem, where he spent the most of his career in farming, although he 
has of late years been engaged in the mercantile business in North Salem. 
Early in life he started to study medicine, but eventually gave this up and 
devoted his attention to farming. He died in May, 1893. ^^^ his wife on 
December 31. 1891. Mr. and Mrs. Daniel N. Davidson were the parents 
of seven children: Oliver F., who died at the age of nine; Ida, who was the 
wife of William H. Vannice and died September 7, 1892; Melissa, who was 
the wife of A. G. Hypes and died in May, 1903; Lillie V., of North Salem; 
Mary N., the wife of James Oscar Emmons, of North Salem; William 
Robert, whose career is herein presented, and one child who died in in- 
fancy. 

William Robert Davidson remained on the home farm until his mar- 
riage, after which he farmed his father's place for eight years and then, 
after three years' residence in North Salem, he bought ninety-two and a 
half acres east of his present farm, where he lived for thirteen years. He 
then sold this farm and moved four miles northeast of North Salem, after 
which he lived three years in North Salem, then bought his present farm 
of sixty-seven and a half acres, two miles northeast of North Salem. He has 
improved his farm in many ways and has brought it up to a high state of 
cultivation. 

Mr. Davidson was married on January 13, 1884. to Rosella Crose, the 
daughter of James Ross and Ann Eliza (Riggin) Crose. James R. 
Crose was born in Marion township, this coui)ty, in 1834, the son of An- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 3OI 

drew Jackson and Nancy (Rogers) Crose. Both his parents were born, 
reared and married in Nicholas county, Kentucky, and came to this county 
in 1 83 1 and entered land. When James R. was about thirteen years old, his 
parents moved to Boone county, where Andrew J. Crose died about six ^ 
months later, leaving his widow and seven children. 

James Ross Crose remained in Boone county until his marriage, in 
1852, to Lurancy Riley, the daughter of Allen and Levina Riley, of Boone 
county. His wife died in i860, leaving one son, James Madison; two 
other children had died in infancy. James Madison Crose married Alice 
Ellington and was killed by a falling tree in Eel River township at the age 
of forty-two. Mr. Crose was married a second time on March 12, 1862, 
to Ann Eliza Riggin, who was born in 1842 in Montgomery county, Kentucky, 
daughter of Wesley and Ann (Wren) Riggin. She came with her parents 
from Kentucky to this county when she was nine years of age. They came 
in wagons, and consumed eight days in making the overland trip to this 
county. Mr. and Mrs. Riggin located about two miles north of North Salem 
and later moved three miles southwest of Lizton, where they made their 
home and spent the remainder of their lives. There were three children by 
the second marriage: Rosella, the wife of William Davidson: Lillie Dale, the 
wife of Dr. William Wiseheart. of Colfax, Indiana, and Mary Etta, the 
wife of Douglas S. Grimes, a merchant of North Salem. Dr. and Mrs. 
Wiseheart have one daughter. Nina ; Mr. and Mrs. Grimes have two children, 
Edna and Herman C. ; Mr. and Mrs. Davidson, of North Salem, have four 
daughters, Blanche Naomi, Murle Agnes, Nellie May and Hilda Marie. 
Blanche is the wife of James H. Eiscus, of North Salem; Murle Agnes is a 
teacher -in the city schools of Muncie, having previously taught at North 
Salem and Connersville ; the other two daughters are still at home. All 
four daughters graduated from the North Salem high school and three at- 
tended the Central Normal College at Danville. Murle has been a student 
at the State University at Bloomington. 

Mr. Davidson is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. 
He has never sought or desired office of any kind, though by nature and 
experience he is well qualified to fill important trusts. He has chosen the 
quiet way rather than the turmoil and unrest, and in the quietude of home 
has found the content which would have been denied him in public places. 
A successful farmer, a kind and obliging neighbor and a worthy citizen, he 
has lived to honorable ends. 



302 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

WILLIAM A. HOLLINGSWORTH. 

The gentleman whose name heads this article is so well and favorably 
known throughout Hendricks count}^ that an elaborate introduction to our 
readers would be superfluous; but some of the facts of his life's history can- 
not fail to be of interest to many. 

Mr. Hollingsworth was born January i, 1852, in \\'ashington township. 
Hendricks county, the son of Samuel V. and Lydia (Mullin) Hollings- 
worth. His father, Samuel V., was one of the early settlers of the county, 
having been brought from Ohio by his own parents when a child, and livmg 
thereafter for many years in the vicinity of Plainfield. He received his 
schooling in the little country school, and lived the free, imtrammeled life 
of the farm ; but, though revelling in the pure air and sunshine of his sur- 
roundings, he was ambitious and sought eagerly for new avenues of em- 
ployment. Never failing to grasp the opportunities for improvement which 
came to him. he learned the various trades of the silversmith, gunsmith 
and blacksmith, and became especially skilled as a wood worker, for which 
there was much demand in the early days, before the advent of the nfiodern, 
machine-equipped furniture factory. His versatility found him ample em- 
ployment aside from that of farming, and, though he spent his life in the 
country, it was in the various trades that he excelled. His wife, the mother 
of William Hollingsworth, was a native of North Carolina, coming first to 
Jackson county, and then to Hendricks county at the age of ten years with 
her parents, who settled near Plainfield. To this union were born four chil- 
dren, William A., Delia Catherine (Smith), Sarah Adaline and Charles 
Dayton. 

In the year of 1883 death called the wife and mother, and in 1906 the 
father was carried to his final resting place. 

Mr. Hollingsworth was not active in church, fraternal, or political af- 
fairs, though a consistent Republican voter; but was an excellent neighbor 
and interested in all movements for the public welfare at home and abroad. 

The boyhood and youth of William A. Hollingsworth were spent upon 
his father's farm, and his education was afforded by the district school. 
Rural life with its labors and its pleasures became "second nature" to him, 
and the pursuit of agriculture in its various phases became, early in life, 
his chosen calling. He was married on November 13, 1873, to Ellen Hadley. 
who was born near Avon, the daughter of Enos and Susan (Smith) Hadley, 
and to them have been born five children, as follows : Florence Effie, Bertha 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 3O3 

Beatrice, Susan Belle, Samuel Vestal and Wilda Azalee. The eldest daugh- 
ter, Florence Effie, was twice married, first to William Logston. one daugh- 
ter being born of that marriage, Edna Logston ; the second husband is 
Lewis Darnell, a prosperous farmer of Middle township. The second child 
of Mr. and Mrs. Hollingsworth is now Mrs. Earl C. Weaver, who lives in 
Texas and is the mother of two children, Gladys and Earl Cassius, Jr. Mr. 
Weaver was formerly a printer at Pittsboro and at Jamestown. Susan 
Belle, now Mrs. Carl Clark, resides on a farm southwest of Maplewood, in 
this county, and is the mother of one son, John William. The two younger 
children still enjoy the protection of the parental roof, being on the old 
homestead, which has been the abiding place of the family since March, 
1874, though a new and modern residence was erected in 19 12. Here Mr. 
Hollingsworth brought his bride the year following their marriage, and 
around the old house clustered all the memories of many happy years. The 
fifty-acre tract of land which surrounds the home is in a high state of cul- 
tivation and shows the care of an intelligent, careful, industrious man. 

In the past Mr. Hollingsworth has dealt largely in live stock, having 
raised many choice animals for the market, and so discriminating in his 
judgment in this branch of his work that he found it profitable for eight 
years to give his time entirely to the purchase of live stock for John V. 
Hadley, depending upon hired help to carry forward the general work on his 
farm. 

In the year 1904 Mr. Hollingsworth was elected trustee of Middle 
township and four years he served in this capacity, devoting his time and 
energy zealously to the service of the people. 

Mrs. Hollingsworth is also a member of one of the most prominent 
families of Hendricks county, being the daughter of Enos Hadley, a native 
of this county and one of the pioneer settlers. He was born in 1825 and, 
spent his days in his home locality. One of the very successful farmers in 
the vicinity, he yet found time and energy for the exercise of his talents 
in a still broader capacity, serving for many years as commissioner of 
Hendricks county, and also acting as ditch commissioner. He was actively 
engaged in this work until the day of his death, which occurred November 
II, 1893, at the home of his son, Cassius Hadley, in Danville. His wife 
was a native of Henry county, Kentucky, born there January 28, 1834. 
Nine children were born to them: Ellen E. (Hollingsworth), James A., Hor- 
ace E., Cassius C, deceased, Clara B. (Vickery), Robert S., Wilber E. and 



30-} HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA, 

Lester B., deceased. The children have inherited the abiHty of the parents, 
and many have won for themselves enviable places in the community. 

Reverting to the subject of this article, William H. Hollingsworth, 
we find him a man of few words, but wnth a kindly manner which inspires 
confidence not only in the home circle, but throughout the county, where he 
is known by a host of friends. He is a member of the Masonic order at 
Danville; an adherent of the Republican party, and both he and Mrs. Hol- 
lingsworth are prominent members of the Methodist church, at Bartlett's 
Chapel. 

The living exemplification of virtuous lives, well spent for their family 
and the community at large, they are enjoying the fruits of their labor 
among a host of friends. 



JOHN W. TINDER. 



Among the men of a past generation who left the impress of their indi- 
viduality upon Hendricks county, Indiana, there is no one who can gamsay 
the fact that John W. Tinder was one of nature's noblemen. To know hmi 
intimately was to be impressed with his earnestness of purpose, his purity of 
life and the nobility of his character, To be associated with him in daily 
work was to be impressed with the truth that here was a man honest, liberty 
loving and God fearing. He was retiring in his nature, yet he had that 
tenacity of purpose and that industry that pushed to successful completion 
whatever he undertook. He was ever an industrious man and his wonderful 
executive ability brought him much to do. He was justly proud of his mil- 
itary record, yet he rarely referred to it, and when he did it was W'ith that 
modesty which revealed the unassuming man. He was an intense partisan 
and alw^ays took an active interest in his party's welfare, and it is doubtful 
if any man in Hendricks county knew more men in the county than dk\ he at 
the time of his death. To a wonderful degree he held the confidence of the 
people and their confidence was never betrayed in the slightest degree. He 
was successful in the business world and his life throughout is a worthy ex- 
ample which the coming youth of this county would do well to emulate. In 
him was peace and his memory will be long cherished by those who knew him. 

The late John W. Tinder, of Hendricks county, Indiana, was born Janu- 
ary 22, 1835, in the county where he spent his whole life, and died in Dan- 
ville Julv 8, 1903. He received such education as the common schools of his 




JOHN W. TINDER 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 3U5 

clay afforded and spent all of his boyhood days on the farm where he was 
born. He remained at home until he was twenty-two years of age and then, 
on February 5, 1857, married Laura Hamrick, daughter of William F. and 
Jane Hamrick. The Hamrick family is one of the best known and oldest 
families of Putnam county, Indiana, and many of its descendants have occu- 
pied responsible positions in the affairs of the county. 

Immediately after his marriage Mr. and Mrs. Tinder bought a farm in 
Marion township, where they lived most happily until July 2, 1862, and on 
that date Mr. Tinder enlisted in Company A, Fourth Indiana Cavalry, and 
commenced his service of three years in that memorable struggle which goes 
down in history as the greatest civil- war the world has ever known. Upon 
the organization of the troops he was promoted to sergeant and was mustered 
out as lieutenant. He was in continuous service from the date of his enlist- 
ment until he was honorably discharged at Nashville. Tennessee, in Septem- 
ber, 1865. He participated in the battles of Chickamauga, Dalton, Resaca, 
in all the battles of the Atlanta campaign, Kenesaw Mountain, Peach Tree 
Creek, Jonesboro and Wilson's raid. He saw severe fighting in Kentucky at 
Lebanon and Perryville, and while on the Bardstown pike was wounded in 
the left leg below the knee. He received a furlough for two months on ac- 
count of this disability, spending the time at home, rejoining his command at 
Gallatin, Tennessee. On the Atlanta campaign his regiment was under fire 
for almost four months, and after the surrender of Atlanta he, returned to 
Nashville and was in the memorable battle of Franklin. He was always an 
active soldier and, possessing a hardy constitution, endured all the vicissitudes 
and hardships of army life with fortitude, but was never in a hospital nor 
captured during his period of service. 

Shortly after the close of the war Mr. and Mrs. Tinder moved to Dan- 
ville, where they resided until the time of his death, and his widow is still 
a resident of that place. Two children were born to them, both of whom 
died in infancy. They reared three children and gave them all the advan- 
tages of a tender mother's and father's care, namely : John O'Donnell, whom 
they took at the age of eight years, and who made his home with them until 
he died at the age of twenty-five ; Linnie Wallen. who went to live with them 
at the age of ten, and who died in 1894, and Thomas Bence, who came into 
their lives when he was a child of fourteen, and who is now in the newspaper 
business in Danville. 

Mr. Tinder had a love for politics and his interest in public affairs was 
(20) 



306 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

one of the pronounced characteristics of his nature. He served during 
several campaigns as chairman of the county organization of the Repubhcan 
party, and was elected commissioner of Hendricks county for four terms, and 
no county ever had a better or more faithful officer. He also served on the 
town board and at the time of his death was a trustee-elect from his ward. 
He was a member of Silcox Lodge, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and 
had been treasurer of this lodge for years. Among the monuments to his 
memory in his public official career is the Danville water plant, which was 
put in under his immediate supervision. 

Such, in brief, is the life history of a man wdio truly lived for the service 
he could render to his home, to his country and to his God. His life was a 
blessing to the community in which he lived and, as has been said, the lives 
of such men do not go out, they go on. 



ALFRED R. GLOVER. 



This honored veteran of the Civil War is to be designated as one of the 
progressive and influential citizens of Hendricks county, where for many 
years he has maintained his home, figuring as one of the builders of the com- 
munity and especially worthy of consideration in this work. He has, by 
his industry and sound judgment, not only improved a fine farm and gained 
a large competency for his old age, but he has materially assisted in the gen- 
eral welfare of the community, in many ways lending his valuable time and 
influence in the promulgation of various uplifting movements. 

Alfred R. Glover, one of the leading farmers of Hendricks county, In- 
diana, and justice of the peace at Clayton, was born on December 19, 1841, 
near Belleville, this county, the son of James and Mary P. (Reagan) Glo- 
ver, the former of whom was born in the northern edge of Tennessee on the 
Barron river in 18 13. His parents both died when he was a small child 
and when a boy in his teens he came to Indiana, having relatives in Lawrence 
county, near Bedford, and also near Belleville, this county. He worked as 
a farm hand and saved his money, so that shortly after his marriage he was 
able to purchase eighty acres of land, something over two miles southwest 
of Clayton, and there the family took up their residence after the birth of 
the immediate subject of this sketch. It was on that farm James Glover 
passed the remainder of his life, his death occurring about 1888. Mary 
P. Reagan, mother of the subject, was a native of Virginia, born about 1815, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 307 

and was early left an orphan. At the age of four years she was brought 
westward into Indiana and was reared in the family of Major Red. They 
took up their residence near Belleville at an early day and in this locality she 
passed the remainder of her life. She remained on the home farm after the 
death of her husband until about two years prior to her death, when the 
subject built for her a home in Clayton and had nurses to care for her the 
remainder of her life. She passed away in 1892, surrounded by every care 
and comfort the subject was able to procure for her. 

Alfred R. Glover grew to maturity on his father's farm south of Clay- 
ton, assisting with the work of the home place until the beginning of the 
Civil War. In August, 1862, he enlisted in Company C, Seventieth Regi- 
ment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, under Gen. Benjamin Harrison, that regi- 
ment being part of the Twentieth Army Corps. As a private in the Armv 
of the Cumberland he was with Sherman through the Atlanta campaign and 
was engaged in almost continual fighting after leaving Tennessee until the 
fall of Atlanta. At Resaca he was wounded, but made a quick recovery. It 
was at this battle he was in the hottest fight of his service. His regiment 
led the charge against the enemy and got into the fort through a rain of lead, 
fighting the enemy hand to hand. They captured four pieces of artillery, the 
only artillery captured on that campaign. In that fierce conflict of fifteen 
minutes, which well might have dismayed the bravest, they lost one hundred 
and sixty-nine men killed and wounded. After the close of the Atlanta cam- 
paign, Mr. Glover came down with typhoid fever. Up to that time he had 
never been off duty and now to his dismay he was ordered sent back to the 
hospital at Chattanooga. There he remained for some time, having the 
disease in so severe a form that at times his case seemed hopeless. However, 
he finally recovered sufficiently to be returned home, but so anxious was he 
to be again at the front that after a thirty-day furlough he rejoined his 
regiment at Alexandria, Virginia, going by rail to New York City and from 
thence by ship down the coast. This was in April, 1865, and when his regi- 
ment arrived at the place above mentioned he was so overjoyed that he 
rushed eagerly past the guards to greet his comrades in arms. He was still 
incapacitated on account of his illness and was not able to participate in the 
grand review of troops which passed before President Johnson (Lincoln 
having been assassinated a short time before) in Washington during May, 
1865, but was able to witness that impressive sight and in June of the same 
year was mustered out of service and sent home. He returned to his father's 
farm and took up the reins of duty where he had lain them down at the 
call of his country. 



308 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

On October 4, 1866, a little more than a year after his return from the 
army, Mr. Glover was united in marriage to Isabinda Estes, who was born 
on Mill Creek near Pecksburg, a daughter of Edward B. and Mary (Smith) 
Estes, both natives of Randolph county, North Carolina, and among the 
early pioneers of this section. Edward B. Estes, when a boy of eight years, 
was brought to Washington county, this state, by his parents and later came 
to Morgan county, where he was married. Later on he brought his family 
to near Pecksburg, where he bought one hundred and sixty acres of land 
which another. man had entered from the government, and there passed the 
remainder of his life. After his marriage, the subject purchased a farm of 
forty and three-quarters acres of land in section 2g, in Liberty township, 
this countv, near Hazelwood ; the three-quarters of an acre was intended as 
a building site, the balance of the land being very wet. He carried out his 
plans, building a home and living there for many years until he moved to 
Clayton. Some time after his original purchase, he bought the eighty acres 
adjoining and in all has put in twenty-six hundred rods of ditching and 
drain tile. In this way he has disposed of the surplus moisture and has 
made an excellent farm of it which produces banner crops. In September, 
i8q2, he moved into Clayton, where he bought a home, which he later sold 
for twenty-four hundred and seventy-five dollars, and in IQ06 purchased the 
residence where he now resides. This is located in the northern part of 
Clayton, being one of the finest homes in the town, strictly modern, with 
private lighting plant and in the basement a fine flowing well that never 
runs less than an inch stream of water. Mr. Glover manages his farm and 
also is engaged in the coal business. In addition to his lousiness, he has served 
as notary public for four years and for the past seventeen year,s has been 
justice of the peace. He was first appointed to fill out another's unexpired 
term and since that time has Ijeen four times elected, each time for a term 
of four years. He is considered remarkably wise and fair in his deci- 
sions, his long experience enabling him to see a case from all sides and also 
to judge correctly of the veracity of his witnesses. He is said never to have 
had a case reversed on appeal and in all the years he has had only four cases 
where a jury was called for and many cases have been venued to him from 
other townships. He has made for himself an enviable reputation in this 
line of work and by his wisdom and justice has promoted kindlier feelings 
among those who have been brought l^efore him. 

Mr. Glover has been twice married, his first wife having passed away on 
May 16, 1890. To their union had been l)orn two children, the eldest be- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 3O9 

ing a son who died at birth in September, 1867. On July 24, 1875. their 
daughter Samantha was born. She is now Mrs. Ohver Edward Frazier 
and lives near Ellettsville, Owen county, this state. She is the mother of 
five children. Earl G.. Annie, Effie. Mabel and Ruth. 

On November 28, 1901, Mr. Glover was again married, his bride being 
Mary Frances Jones, who was born three miles south of Clayton, the daughter 
of John and Rose (Williams) Jones. John Jones was born in Owen county, 
this state, and when a small child of three years was iDrought to this county 
by his parents. John Jones, senior, entered land from the government south 
of Clayton and also purchased other land, making in all a farm of one 
hundred and twenty acres, where he lived the remainder of his life. He was 
an excellent man and for many years prior to his death was a minister in the 
Baptist church. He was a man of strong influence for good in the early 
days of this locality and reared his family strictly in accordance with the 
tenets of his chosen church society. His son John, father of Mrs. Glover, 
was also active in Baptist church circles, saving served his society as deacon 
for forty years prior to his death. The vocation of farming w^as his life's 
work and his efforts in this direction were entirely confined within Liberty 
township, this county. Rose Williams, mother of Mrs. Glover, was a na- 
tive of North Carolina and at the tender age of two years was brought by 
her parents, Enoch Williams and wife, to Hendricks county, locating just 
east of the Jones farm, where Mr. Williams purchased land and passed 
the remainder of his life. Rose (Williams) Jones departed this life No- 
vember 17, 1899, her husband, John Jones, junior, following her into the 
great beyond on May 15, 1907. It was the desire of Mr. and Mrs. Jones that 
their children should all be well educated, and after attending the schools 
near home where she received her elementary education, Mrs. Glover at- 
tended the Central Normal College at Danville, Indiana, and later studied 
at Franklin College, Franklin, this state. After teaching school for one year, 
she took further training at the State Normal School at Terre Haute. Then 
for one year she taught school in Johnson county, this state, two years in this 
county and three years in Page county, Iowa. She then returned to Clay- 
ton, where she has since resided. A sister, Mrs. Minnie Swindler, and a 
brother, J. Ulysses, are both also graduates of Franklin College. For ten 
years J. Ulysses Jones was connected with the United States revenue service, 
but is at present engaged in farming on the old homestead. Two others of 
the family, Wayland and Mrs. Alice Gully, attended Franklin College. Jewett, 
another brother, died in 19 12. 



3IO HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Both Air. and Airs. Glover are members of the Baptist church at Clay- 
ton, the former having served as deacon for considerably over forty years, 
being- ordained to that service on the same day as Mrs. Glover's father. 
This was in the Friendship Baptist church and Mr. Glover has continued 
without interruption ever since. Mrs. Glover also is active in church 
work, being the financial secretary of the Woman's Foreign Missionary 
Society of the White Lick association. Mr. Glover is secretary of the 
Crawford Industrial Home, located at Zionsville, this state, being a home 
for friendless children supported by the White Lick association of Bap- 
tist churches. In politics, Mr. Glover is a Progressive, having readily en- 
dorsed the principles of the new party as laid down by the leaders of 
same at its birth in Chicago. Prior to that time he had been a stanch Repub- 
lican. Mr. Glover is a man whose influence has ever been extended for the 
advancement of the best interests of his community, and is held in the very 
highest esteem by the friends and neighbors who have known him for years. 
This is the highest tribute a man can win. To live in the same community 
year in and year out, to be engaged in the public administration of affairs, 
and to rise steadily in the regard and esteem of those with whom he comes 
in contact is the great privilege only of those whose lives are ordered by 
the highest principles and who give themselves unselfishly to the best in- 
terests of others. Mrs. Glover is known as a w-oman possessing many ad- 
mirable traits of character, of keen intelligence and broad sympathies, whose 
helpful hand is ever outstretched to assist in the moral and educational 
welfare of those about her. 



JOHN ENOS LEACH. 



Among the men of sterling worth and character who have made an im- 
press upon the life of the locality in which they live there is no one who 
has received a larger meed of popular respect and regard than John E. 
Leach, whose family name is well known throughout this county. A life- 
long residence in one county has given the people an opportunity to know 
him in every phase of his character and that he has been true to life in its 
every phase is manifested in the degree of confidence and regard in which he is 
held by all those who know him. 

John E. Leach, one of the most prosperous farmers of Union town- 
ship, was born July 30, 1861, in the township where he has lived all his life- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 3 II 

His parents were James j\I. and Elizabeth (Hamilton) Leach, both of whom 
were born in Hendricks county. James M. Leach was born February 
9, 1834, and was the son of Enos and Elizabeth Leach, who were natives 
of Kentucky. They settled in Union township, Hendricks county, in the fall 
of 1 83 1, where Enos Leach entered two hundred acres. They were the 
parents of seven children, of whom James M. was the fifth. James M. grew 
to manhood in Hendricks county and was married on March 17, 1859, to 
Elizabeth Hamilton, the daughter of Abraham Hamilton, of Hendricks 
county. James M. Leach became one of the leading farmers of the county 
and had two hundred and seventy-one acres of fine farming land and one of 
the finest residences in the county. He and his wife were members of the 
Christian church, of which he was an elder for several years. 

John E. Leach was given a good common school education and remained 
at home until he was twenty-five. He then began farming on land which 
his grandfather had entered and to this he has added seventy-eight acres, 
which now gives him a fine farm of three hundred and eighteen acres in this 
township. He has a beautiful home, excellent barn and outbuildings and 
keeps all these details about his place in a manner which speaks well for the 
taste of the owner. He has raised all of the crops which are peculiar to this 
latitude and in addition has supplemented his annual income by breeding 
a large amount of stock each year. 

Mr. Leach was married September i, 1886, to Malissa Money, the 
daughter of John T. and Malinda Money. John T. Money was a native of 
Kentucky and came to this county with his parents when he was a small 
boy. His wife was a native of Boone county, Indiana, and died on the Money 
homestead farm in this county in 1903. Mr. Money died December 11, 
1906, on his son's farm south of Danville, as a result of a severe fall. Air. 
and Mrs. Money were the parents of seven children: William; John, de- 
ceased; Pressley; Oliver; Malissa, the wife of Mr. Leach, and two who died 
in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Leach have reared a family of five children : 
Granville, Paul, Fannie E., deceased, Ralph and Emma. Paul married jNIamie 
Kendle and lives on a farm across from the old homestead place; he has 
three children, Pauline, John Edward and Barbara Ellen. 

Mr. Leach is a member of the Knights of 'Pythias at Lizton. Politi- 
cally, he has always identified himself with the Republican party and takes 
an interest in the various political questions of the day, although he has 
never been a seeker for any office. He and his wife are members of the 
Christian church and take a deep and abiding interest in all church work, 



^^^ HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Mr. Leach being a elder in the church at the present time. Personally he 
IS one of the best known farmers in the township and is well liked b,- 
everyone because of his square dealings and upright manner in all thing 
He can now look back over his life without regret for any misspent days 
for .t has been such as to bring only good to hin,self and to others ' 



JACOB J. PAGE. 

J Pat'l"eLrr"'f i" "' """' '"'"'■•^ "'"^'^ '^ '^^- P--"'«l °f J-ob 
innfr He 1: '" ^"'^'""=^^^'■"S details of his career in an e.xhaustiye 

cessful citi^ F 1 ' '" "' ""^°"'"' P'^" '" "- -"ks of success- 

a f tm r an , Ir ^°""*''' ^"^ ""'' '°"^ '''^ P^« -^"- "is record 

as a farmer and as a pubhc-sp.nted citizen has been such as to gain for him 

he compensafon and approval of his fellow ctizens. His career has been"^ 

ong, busy and useful one and he has contributed much to the r^ terll c'i 

and moral advancement of the community 

I. lirV' '''^h' *'r,": °' ^'"™"' J- ^'S' ^"^ -'f^' ™^ born March 

ndiana Ac '"', Tv ""f ""' °' ^"^"^ S^'^"' '" P"'"- county. 

oftrliaf I T' ."f ^°' ''' ''''' '^""-^ '^ »"'^- '" *c biography 
ot Jerem.ah J. Page, which ,s found elsewhere in this work 

Jacob J. Page received a good common school education and remained 
acres and, w th this as a begmner, he has become one of the most prosperous 

™ e:tir:Ti'rf""^ :' ''' ^°""'^- "^ -^^ ^-" ^ ^—-7 

II ? M , "' "''^'"^ ^ '^'"""y °f *=«"'<= ^"d hogs. He has also 
bought and sold land at different times, and by the use of good judgmeL h" 
usually been able to real.ze on each transaction. As he Cas able hradded 
to h,s possessions until he now owns nine hundred and si.xty-si.x a res of land 
all of which .s improved. On his different farms he has good houses barns' 
and outbuildings and he takes a great deal of pride in keeping ev r'Slin/ n 

:a\:errp":::;;' ""-- "-^^ - ^«-- — : enhaC: .: 

r ,^,'m^' ""' T""^ '" '^^' '" ^'^^ Thompson, the daughter of Nelson 

Thl ^t' u ^ '°""'^' ^*="'»*y. 'he son of John R. and Martha 
Thompson. In the summer of 1843 John R. Thompson and his family elm! 
to this county and bought a farm in Eel River township. In addit'o„"o 




^•=y iaZ"^ i»&;4iOTjr ^^.-trA'y 







I 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 3I3 

farming, John Thompson bought and sold a large amount of live stock, 
especially mules and horses. Nelson Thompson grew to manhood in this 
county and married Margaret McCreary, the daughter of Huston and 
Lucinda (Jordan) McCreary. Margaret McCreary was born in Clark town- 
ship, Montgomery county, her parents having come from Virginia in pioneer 
times and entered a homestead near New Ross, Montgomery county. After 
his marriage Nelson Thompson came to Hendricks county and farmed in 
Eel River township until his death, in April, 1906. His wife died in July, 
1898. 

Mr. and Mrs. Page are loyal members of the Christian church of North 
Salem. They are the parents of nine children, all of whom are still living 
at home : Asa, Cecil, Bessie, Birdie, Roxie, Mamie, Lena, Oscar and Stella. 
Mr. Page is a public-spirited and progressive man and has always been inter- 
ested in the various movements and measures which were calculated to im- 
prove the welfare of his community. Quiet and unassuming in demeanor, 
he has always attended strictly to his own business and for this reason is 
numbered among the representative men of his community. 



BENJAMIN GRAYSON EDMONDSON. 

The occupation of farming, to which the major part of the business 
life of Benjamin G. Edmondson, one of the well known and popular citizens 
of Hendricks county, has been devoted, is the oldest pursuit for a liveli- 
hood of mankind and the one in which he will ever be the most independent. 
The subject's name has been inseparably connected with the general growth 
of Hendricks county, of which he has long been a resident. While primarily 
attending to his own varied interests, his life has been largely devoted to his 
fellow men, having been untiring in his efforts to inspire a proper respect 
for law and order and ready at all times to uplift humanity along civic and 
social lines. 

Benjamin G. Edmondson, retired farmer of Hendricks county, who is 
now living in comfortable retirement in Clayton, was born in Morgan county, 
this state, on September 11, 1831, the son of Francis and Jane (Grayson) 
Edmondson. Francis Edmondson was born in Knox county, Tennessee, in 
1802, where he grew to manhood and was there united in marriage with 
Jane Grayson. About the year 1828 they came into Indiana and settled in 
Morgan county, where they entered government land and remained there 



314 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

until the subiect was about two years okl, when they came to Hendricks 
county and entered government land south of the Walker farm, located south 
of the national road in Liberty township. He at first entered eighty arces, 
but purchased more later and was possessed of two hundred and sixty acres 
at the time of his death. Both he and his wife were devout memljers of the 
Baptist church and in this faith they reared their family. 

Benjamin Grayson Edmondson grew from babyhood to manhood in 
this county, receiving his elementary education in the early schools of this 
district and later attending Franklin College. On October 20, 1853, he was 
united in marriage with Mary A. Little, who was born near Plainfield, a 
daughter of Samuel and Rebecca (Greene) Little, her father being a farmer 
who had come to this county from Washington county, this state. After the 
subject was married, he took his bride to a little cabin which he had erected 
and prepared for her with his own hands on a tract of land where only 
twenty acres were at that time cleared. He had considerable more work to 
do in this line and in preparing his land for cultivation he endured the hard- 
ships and privations of the early pioneers. On this first tract he lived for 
about three years, when he purchased the tract of forty acres adjoining, where 
he resided until 1867. He then moved a short distance south of Clayton, 
where he purchased a farm of eighty acres, to which he later added eighty 
acres more and then again a tract of one hundred and eight acres. He now 
owns about six hundred and forty acres of excellent land, in this township, 
all attesting to the business ability and indomitable energy of their owner. 
On January 14, 1888, Mrs. Edmondson passed away, being the mother of 
eight children who lived beyond infancy, one of whom, Rebecca, died when 
seventeen years of age. The seven living are Columbus, Robert A., Mrs. 
Lizzie Worrell Thomas B., Joseph L., Samuel Eugene and Charles Arthur. 
Mr. Edmondson has the pleasure of seeing all his children in good circum- 
stances and an excellent way of life, and has the additional enjoyment of 
having them all near him, as all reside in or near Clayton. All but Charles are 
engaged in farming, he being in the implement business. He is a skilled 
marksman and a trap shooter of national reputation. Robert is president 
of the People's Bank and Trust Company. Joe is a prosperous and suc- 
cessful farmer, who, in addition to the regular business of his farm, pays 
particular attention to a fine strain of horses and mules. 

On February 29, 1888. Mr. Edmondson was again united in marriage, 
his bride being Mrs. Mary E. (Springer) Ader. who was born in Darke 
county. Ohio, the daughter of Benjamin O. and Eliza Springer. In. 1856. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 3I5 

when she was fifteen years old, her folks moved to Decatur county, where 
her father entered land for himself and all his sons. In i860 she was united 
in marriage to Jacob H. Ader, who was born in Putnam county, this state. 
His father and Mrs. Edmondson's father moved to the state of Iowa at the 
same time. In 1861 Mr. and Mrs. Ader came back to Indiana and located 
in Putnam county, near Groveland, and remained there as long as her first 
husband lived. His death occurred about 1872. She remained there on the 
farm until the time of her marriage to Mr. Edmondson. She had two sons 
by her first husband, John ^^^, of Danville, and Solomon O.. who still lives 
on the farm in Putnam county. In 1902 Mr. Edmondson purchased a resi- 
dence in Clayton, where he has lived most of the time since, but he passes 
considerable of his time on the farm. He has made farming and stock 
raising his life's vocation and still continues to manage the farm. Mr. Ed- 
mondson has raised himself to an enviable position among the agriculturists 
of his county, entirely by his own efforts. He possesses an unfailing energy, 
excellent judgment and his ambition has ever been set on a goal far ahead. 
While seeking primarily the interests of himself and family, he has ever 
borne in mind his duty to his fellow man, and has proven himself a neigh- 
bor of unusual helpfulness and consideration. Through this manner of 
living, he has endeared himself to a large circle of friends and acquain- 
tances. Mr. Edmondson is independent in politics, voting for the man in- 
stead of the party every time. Both he and his wife are members of the 
Presbyterian church and- give liberally toward its support. He is one of 
the trustees of the church and has been an honored and active member for a 
number of years. United in his composition are so many elements of a 
provident, practical nature, which during a series of years have brought him 
into prominence and earned for him a first place among the enterprising 
men of his county, that it is but just recognition of his worthiness that he 
receive specific mention in this work. 



MARSHALL UNDERWOOD. 

The biographies of the representative men of a country bring to light 
many hidden treasures of mind, character and courage, well calculated to 
arouse the pride of their family and of the community, and it is a source 
of regret that the people are not more familiar with the personal history 
of such men, in the ranks of whom may be found tillers of the soil, mechan- 



3l6 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ics. teachers, as well as lawyers, physicians, bankers and members of other 
vocations and professions. The subject of this sketch is distinctively one of 
the leading citizens of the township in which he lives, and as such has made 
his influence felt among his fellow men and earned a name for enterprise, 
integrity and honor that entitles him to worthy notice in a work of the na- 
ture of this volume. 

Marshall Underwood, the son of Franklin and Ella (Christie) Under- 
wood, was born in Marion township, Hendricks county, September 27, 
1863. His father was born March i, 1826, in Shelby county, Kentucky. He 
came to this county with his parents when he was eight years of age. His 
father, John Underwood, entered land in Marion township, this county, and 
lived on the farm which he entered, until his death in 1861. 

Franklin Underwood was twice married, his first wife being Catherine 
Martin, to whom he was married January 24, 1850. To the first marriage 
were born three children: Clara, who died September 21, 1867; Mrs. Re- 
becca Beckley and Mrs. Sarah L. Christie. His first wife died August 13, 
1859, and in i860 Mr. Underwood married Ella Christie, who was a na- 
tive of Kentucky and has been a resident of this county since she was four 
years of age. Her parents came to this county from Kentucky and lived 
near New Winchester in Marion township. To this second marriage was 
born one child, Marshall, whose history is herein presented. The second 
wife of Franklin Underwood was born in 1832 and died in 19 14, at the age 
of eighty-one. 

Franklin Underwood was a remarkable man in many ways. He was a 
verv careful man in his business affairs, and in everything he did w^as honest 
and upright. While he was laying aside a comfortable competence for his 
old age, he did not neglect the afifairs of a higher life to come. In 1852 
he, with his wife and three of his sisters, united with the New Winches- 
ter Baptist church. In 1857 he was chosen and ordained a deacon in that 
denomination. In 1862 he changed his church membership to Danville and 
united there with the Regular Baptist church, and still later, as a matter 
of convenience, he placed his membership in the Palestine church, in Put- 
nam county, Indiana, where he continued as a member until his death. May 
2, 1892. Franklin Underwood was one of a family of seven and of his 
five sisters and one brother, all are deceased now except his sister, Mrs. 
Lottie McMurry, who lives at Spokane, Washington. At his death he had 
a farm of two hundred and eighty acres, one hundred and eighty of whicli 
was in Putnam county and the remainder in Marion township, this county. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 317 

Marshall Underwood has lived all his life in Alarion township and in 
that township received his early training on the farm and in the district 
schools. He has two hundred and eighteen acres of land south of New 
Winchester, and has it well improved in every way. He raises live stock 
and also feeds much stock for the market, in addition to his general farm- 
ing. 

Mr. Underw^ood was married the first time on October 28, 1885, to 
Clara Johnson, a native of Morgan county, Indiana, and to this union were 
born two children, Mable, born July i, 1890, and Clarence, born April 13, 
1896. Mable married Glenn Brown, a farmer in Putnam county, November 
TO, 1912. Clarence is still with his father on the home farm. Mr. Under- 
wood was married a second time on October i, 1902, to Cora Thompson, a 
native of Hendricks county, and the daughter of Charles and Sarah Jane 
(Moon) Thompson. To this union was born one child. May 18, 1913, now- 
deceased. Mrs. Underwood's father was a native of Illinois, and her mother 
of this county, both of whom are still living. Mr. and Mrs. Charles Thomp- 
son have a family of six children: Cora, the wife of Mr. Underwood, Mavia, 
Maggie, James E., Effie and Charles Walter. 

Mr. Underwood is a Democrat in politics, but takes no further interest 
in politics than to cast his vote for the candidate of his party at election time. 
He and his wife are members of the Missionary Baptist church and he has 
been a trustee in that denomination for the past six years. He is a jovial 
man, with a happy disposition and easily wins friends. He is a man witli 
keen judgment and business qualities which would have made him a suc- 
cess in any line of business to which he might have turned. His conduct 
during his whole career has been exemplary and no action of his has ever 
brought upon him the condemnation of his fellow citizens, and thus he 
justly deserves the esteem and good will which his neighbors have for him. 



CHARLES W. KOCHER. 

Agriculture has always been an honorable occupation and at the pres- 
ent time the agricultural output is more than equivalent to the total output 
of all the factories of the United States. There is one thing in the life of a 
farmer which distinguishes him from men in other occupations, and that is 
his ability to exist independent of every other occupation. The merchant, 
the banker, the manufacturer and the professional man depend absolutely on 



3l8 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

the farmer's crops. A famine throughout this county would wreck the 
strongest bank, close the factories and bankrupt the merchants. The busi- 
ness man can see his business collapse within a week, but nothing short of an 
earthquake can ruin the farmer. Land is and it always has been, the most 
stable investment; panics may sweep the manufacturer out of business over 
night, but the farmer can survive them when every other industry falls. 
Therefore the farmer is the backbone of the nation and he who makes two 
blades of grass grow where but one formerly grew is performing the most 
important mission of man. Hendricks county's farmers are as good as 
can be found anywhere in the world and their history is the history of the 
material advancement of the county, and no farmer in the county is more 
deser\'ing of recognition in this series of sketches than is the gentleman 
whose name heads this sketch. 

Charles W. Kocher was born September 19, i860, in Marion county, 
Indiana, seven miles west of Indianapolis, on the Hanch free gravel road. His 
father, Edwin Kocher, was born in Allen county, Pennsylvania, and when a 
child moved with his parents to a place near Columbus, Ohio. When he was 
eight years of age, his parents moved to Indianapolis, where Edwin F. was 
reared to manhood and married. Edwin F. and his father operated a black- 
smith shop on West Washington street, Indianapolis, for several years. They 
then moved seven miles west of Indianapolis, where they lived until the death 
of Mr. and Mrs. Edwin Kocher, he dying in 1892 and his wife in 1894. 

Charles W. Kocher received his education in Marion county, Indiana, 
completing his common school education in the city schools of Indianapolis. 
In 1894 he moved to his present farm, which he has been operating for the 
past twenty years. As a farmer he has been uniformly successful in his crops 
and raising live stock, which is peculiar to this section of the state, Duroc 
Red hogs receiving his chief attention. 

Mr. Kocher was married in 1891 to Louise J. Hurion, of Hendricks 
county, and to this union have been born two children, Florence, born 
May 27, 1892, who is a teacher in the public schools, and Harry B., born 
November 20, 1896, who is still at home with his parents. Mr. Kocher is 
a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at Plainfield, joining 
the lodge there shortly after attaining his majority. He has lived a simple, 
plain and unostentatious life, doing the good that he could in his community 
and performing all of those civic duties which are the privilege of every 
American citizen. He is a Republican, but never aspired for any office. 
Mrs. Kocher and daughter are members of the Methodist Episcopal church 
at Avon. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 3I9 

DAVID W. CARTER. 

David V/. Carter, a twentieth-century farmer, knows very little of the 
disadvantages which surrounded the pioneer farmers of this state. No longer 
is the farmer compelled to rise early in the morning and continue his labors 
far into the evening. The farmer of today can do as much work in a half of 
a day as his father could fifty years ago in a whole day. The rural route 
leaves the daily paper on his door step each day, the telephone puts him in 
instant communication with his neighbors, and the interurban and auto- 
mobile enable him to participate in all the features of city life. Surround- 
ed by such conditions, the farmer of today can have all the advantages of 
the citizens of the city with few disavantages. 

David W. Carter, the son of John M. and Susan (Wells) Carter, was 
born in 1855, on the farm where he now lives near Avon, Indiana. He was 
educated in the common schools of his township and later took a course in 
Northwestern Christian University, now known as Butler College, Indian- 
apolis. After completing his college course he returned to his. home county, 
where he has continued to follow the occupation of farming. In addition 
to raising all of the crops of this latitude, he makes a speciality of Poland 
China hogs and Jersey cattle. For the past year he has operated an up- 
to-date dairy and has proved to be a very successful dairyman. 

Mr. Carter w-as married in 1876 to Susan Hiatt, the daughter of Jesse 
and Achsa Hiatt, his wife being born in 1854 in Henry county, Indiana. 
Mr. and Mrs. Carter have seven children: Louis F., born in 1877, who is 
a farmer residing with his parents on the home farm; Mrs. Eva May Larsh, 
born in 1881, who is the wife of a farmer in the northeastern part of Wash- 
ington township. She has three children, Raymond, Russell and Edna; 
John L., born in 1885, who is married and is a street car conductor in Indi- 
anapolis; Grace M., born in 1886, who is single and has attended the Metro- 
politian Musical College, Indianapolis, is a musician of more than ordinary 
ability and is now teaching a large class at home; Mary E., born in 1888, is 
single and living at home; she graduated from the high school at Indian- 
apolis; Walter E., born in 1891, is an electrician and is making a special 
study of wireless telegraphy ; Paul H. is working for the Bell Telephone 
Company, and Fanny. Mr. and Mrs. Carter have given all of their seven 
children the advantage of the best education possible and take a great deal 
of pride in the achievements of their children. 

Mr. Carter is one of the most prosperous farmers of Washington tow^n- 



2,20 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ship and his reputation as a farmer and public-spirited citizen is not confined to 
his local township, as is shown by his service on the county council for two 
terms and the township board two terms. In his official capacity as council- 
man, he advocated all measures which were for the welfare of his county, and 
took a decided stand in favor of all improvements which might enhance the 
value of farm property. He is a Republican in politics. Mr. and Mrs. Carter 
are members of the Methodist Episcopal church of Avon and Mr. Carter 
has been a trustee of the church for several years. They are both inter- 
ested in church w^ork and are firm believers in the value of the church as 
a social center in the community. Fraternally, Mr. Carter has been a mem- 
ber of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, at Plainfield, for many years. 



DR. E. RAY ROYER. 



That "man lives not to himself alone" is an assertion that is amply veri- 
fied in all the affairs of life, but its pertinence is most patent in those instances 
where men have so employed their inherent talents, so improved their oppor- 
tunities and so marshalled their forces as to gain prestige, which finds its 
sphere of influence ever widening in beneficence and human helpfulness. 
Greater than in almost any other vocation is the responsibility that rests upon 
the physician, since in his hands repose at times the very issues of life and 
death. To those wdio attain determinate success must there be not only 
given technical ability, but also a broad human sympathy which shall pass 
from mere sentiment to be an actuating motive for helpfulness. 

Dr. E. Ray Royer, of North Salem, was born in Stock well. Tippecanoe 
county, Indiana, October 22, 1875. His parents were J. W. and Sarah 
(Miller) Royer, both of whom were natives of that county. His father^ 
who traces his ancestry back to the first colonists who came to America, is a 
merchant at Stockwell. 

Doctor Royer was educated in the common and high schools of Stock- 
well, and then took a course in a business college at Lafayette, Indiana. In the 
fall of 1899 he matriculated in the Physio-Medical College of Indiana at Indi- 
anapolis, graduating four years later. In order to better prepare himself for his 
life work, he spent two years as an interne in the College Dispensary of Indi- 
anapolis, thereby gaining an experience which has been of invaluable assist- 
ance to him. At the end of his interneship at Indianapolis, he settled in North 
Salem, engaging in the active practice of his profession, in which he has con- 




DR. E. RAY ROYER 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 32 1 

tinned very successfully since. He is now company surgeon for the Cincin- 
nati, Hamilton & Dayton Railway Company for Hendricks county, and, as 
their representative, has the patronage of all the employees of the company 
in this county, or of any one who become injured within the limits of the 
county. Doctor Royer has made a special study of the diseases of women 
and has had considerable experience along this line. Doctor Royer is a physi- 
cian who believes in keeping abreast of the times, and to this end he keeps in 
close touch with the various medical associations, being a member of the 
county, state and American medical associations and ex-president of the Hen- 
dricks County Medical Society. 

Doctor Royer was married June 19, 1895, to Cora McDole, of Stock- 
well, the daughter of Clinton and Ada (Anderson) McDole. Her father 
was a life-long farmer and upon his retirement from active life owned six 
hundred acres of land in Tippecanoe county. Doctor Royer and his wife 
both belong to the Methodist Episcopal church of North Salem, while, fra- 
ternally, he is a Mason, having membership with the Royal Arch chapter of 
his town, and is very much interested in the workings of that order. He and 
his wife have a beautiful bungalow in North Salem where they dispense 
genuine hospitality in a very charming fashion. 



MARSHALL S. GLIDEWELL. 

The present age is essentially utilitarian and the life of every success- 
ful man carries a lesson which, told in contemporary narrative, is produc- 
tive of much good in shaping the destiny of others. There is. therefore, a 
due measure of satisfaction in presenting, even in brief resume, the life and 
achievements of such men, and in preparing the following history of the 
successful farmer whose name appears above it is with the hope that it may 
prove not only interesting and instructive, but also serve as an incentive to 
those who contemplate making the agricultural profession their life work. 

Marshall S. Glidewell, the son of Thomas and Elizabeth Glidewell, was 
born in Sullivan county, Missouri, July 2, 1856. Thomas Glidewell's father 
came from North Carolina and settled near Shelbyville, Shelby county, In- 
diana, in 1828, where Thomas was born on November 22, 1829. 

Marshall S. Glidewell came with his parents from Missouri to Marion 
county when he was two years old and lived in Marion county until his 
(21) 



322 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

marrias^e, in 1884. After finishing" the common school course in his own 
township, he took a course in the Old Pike Township Academy, near 
Trader's Point, in order to prepare himself for the teaching profession. He 
taught one year in the Brown school, Brown township, Hendricks count}'. 
and twelve in Marion county, and was counted among the most successful 
teachers of these counties. The teaching profession lost a good instructor 
when he decided to retire from the school room and engage in farming. 
However, he has been no less successful as a farmer than as a teacher, and 
is now recognized in Hendricks county as one of the foremost farmers of 
the county. He is now and has been for six years the chairman of the 
farmers' institute, is now vice-chairman, and has taken a prominent part in 
the selection of a county agent for his county. His long experience in the 
school room has made a student of him in his agricultural affairs and there 
is probably no better posted man in the county on general agricultural topics 
than Mr. Glidewell. He has successfully combined theory and practice and 
in his career as a farmer he has exemplified the old saying that it takes even 
brains to be a good farmer. 

Mr. Glidewell was married on March 20, 1884, to Laura A. Hocken- 
smith, the daughter of Henry and Jane Hockensmith. After Mr. Glidewell 
quit teaching in Marion county, they removed, on Auguust 4, 1891, to Hen- 
dricks county and bought the farm on which they now reside. He took this 
farm, which was in a very dilapidated condition, and has now made it one 
of the most attractive farms of the county. He has a beautiful home and 
takes a great deal of pride in keeping everything about him in first-class 
condition at all times. He has, in addition to his general farming, made a 
specialty of Poland-China hogs and has shown that it takes good judgment 
and a knowledge of scientific feeding in order to make the raising of hogs 
a lucrative business. Many farmers are not cognizant of the fact that Pur- 
due University issues bulletins which set forth in detail the scientific method 
of feeding, and that these bulletins may be had free of charge by applica- 
tion to the department of agriculture connected with the university. It is in 
keeping in touch with affairs of this nature that makes Mr. Glidewell stand 
out prominently as a progressive and up-to-date farmer. 

Mr. and Mrs. Glidewell have two interesting children, who are now in 
college, Ivan S. and Eva O. Their oldest child, Wilma R., was born June 
24, 1888, and died a year later, June 22, 1889. Ivan S., born June 9, 1891, 
is a senior in Earlham College at Richmond, Indiana, where he is pursuing 
a course in scientific chemistry. The daughter, Eva O., who was born 
November 14, 1883, is a sophomore in Earlham College, and is making a 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 323 

special study of the Latin language, preparing to teach. Mr. and Mrs. 
Glidewell are justly proud of their two children, who are certainly an honor 
to their parents. Mr. and Mrs. Glidewell have a hospitable home where 
they entertain their friends, who are as numerous as their acquaintances. 
]Mr. Glidewell has lived a very useful life and has been prominent in the 
advancement of material, social and moral interests in his county. He al- 
ways stands for such men and measures as he firmly believes will advance 
the best interests of the community and by so doing he has won the hearty 
approbation of all of those with whom he comes in daily contact. He has 
been a leader in his community in the use of commercial fertilizers scienti- 
fically, also advocated and put in practice sub-drainage of soils for the re- 
deeming of land for better agriculture; also stands for good roads. He 
has a beautiful home, modern, as well as all of his outbuildings, which are 
among the best in the township. 



M. H. WEHR. 



One of the progressive farmers and highly respected citizens of Hen- 
dricks county, Indiana, is M. H. Wehr, who takes high rank among the 
agriculturists of his township and vicinity. He possesses energy and deter- 
mination, and has been very successful in making everything he undertakes 
result to his advantage, and his success in his chosen calling is attested by 
the fact of his having started in a humble manner and is now the owner 
of valuable real estate, having accumulated the same by his own efforts. 

M. H. Wehr, a prosperous farmer of Washington township, Hendricks 
county, Indiana, was born in Franklin county, this state, July 9, 1854, the 
son of John and Nancy (Pierson) Wehr, Who were "highly respected citizens 
of their home community. When Mr. Wehr was a small child of two years 
he went with his parents to Butler county, Ohio, remaining there until he 
Was twenty-two years old, at which time he returned to Indiana, and after 
living four years in Franklin county he moved to Washington township, 
Hendricks county, in 1880, and settled on the farm where he has continued 
to reside since that time. As a farmer he has been a pronounced success, 
owing to his persistent efforts and sound judgment, and among his fellow 
agriculturists he occupies an enviable standing because of his business suc- 
cess and personal characteristics. He has carried on general farming and 
has also given much attention to live stock, principally horses. 



324 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Mr. Wehr Avas married on September 29, 1876, to Lida F. Freeland, 
the daughter of Alfred and Ann (Stout) Freeland, of Marion county, this 
state, and to this marriage were born three children : Mrs. Lillian Urmston, 
born September 9, 1877, and now a resident of Riley county, Ohio; Lannes 
S., born July 17, 1879, now a farmer of Butler county, Ohio, and Grace, 
born October 9, 1881, who is now making her home with her sister at Riley, 
Ohio. Mr. Wehr's first wife died July 9, 1884, and he was again married 
on September 29. 1887, to Margaret Freeland, the daughter of George and 
Elizabeth (Harmon) Freeland, she a native of Floyd county, Indiana, and 
he of Franklin county, Indiana, and now living at Lizton, Indiana. 

j\Ir. Wehr is a Democrat in his political views and, religiously, he and his 
wife are members of the Presbyterian church at Clermont. 



ROBERT BAYLISS. 



Among the native sons of Hendricks county, Indiana, who have spent 
their entire lives within its borders, is Robert Bayliss, a prosperous farmer 
of Liberty township. He was born April 18, 1867, in the township where 
he has spent his whole life. His parents were John William and Frances 
(Brill) Bayliss. John Bayliss was born in 1829 in Virginia, and came to 
this county in 1859, with his wife and three sons. They drove through 
from Virginia, following the national road through Ohio and Indiana, and 
located at Center Valley, in Liberty township, this county. A brother of 
Mrs. Bayliss, William Brill, was already here when Mr. Bayliss arrived. 
Here they farmed for several years on a tract of sixty acres. Later John 
W. Bayliss sold this farm and bought property near Hazelwood, where he 
spent his remaining days, his death occurring on September 30, 1909, at the 
advanced age of eighty-one years. He was a stanch Democrat all his life 
and held the office of township supervisor for several years. He was an 
ardent member of the Methodist Episcopal church at Salem, Indiana, and 
was a man who lived a Christian life in every way. Frances Brill, the wife 
of John W. Bayliss, was born in Virginia in 1829 and is still living 
at the old home place near Hazelwood, at the advanced age of eighty-five 
years. She is still hale and hearty and, despite her years, can do a heavy 
day's work, either inside the home or on the farm. Mr. and Mrs. John W. 
Bayliss were the parents of nine children: William M., who lives in Clarence, 
Missouri; Marshall, of Clayton, Indiana; Edward, who died in 191 1; John, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 325 

a resident of Mooresville, Indiana; James, of Clayton, Indiana; Thomas, 
who Hves in Seattle, Washington; Robert, with whom this narrative deals; 
Charles, who died at the age of three years; Ella, who stays at the old home 
place with her mother. 

Mr. Bayliss was married March 25, 1893. to Lura Busby, the daughter 
of Smith and Adeline (Shipley) Busby, and to this union there have been 
born two daughters, Hazel and Helena, who are both at home with their 
parents. 

Smith Busby, the father of Mrs. Bayliss, was born Mav 28, 1842, near 
Hazelwood, Indiana, and was the son of Miles and Ellen (Harrison) Busby. 
]\Iiles Busby and wife were the parents of a family of eleven children, all 
of whom are deceased but Rachel, Smith and John Thomas. These chil- 
dren, in the order of their birth, are as follows : William, Margaret, Mary, 
Rachel, Susan, Lucinda, Smith, Elizabeth, John Thomas and Rebecca. Mrs. 
Rachel (Busby) Busby lives in this county; John Thomas is a resident of 
Indianapolis and is employed by Kingan & Company. 

Smith Busby was married in 1863 to Adeline Shipley, the daughter of 
James and Mary (Borders) Shipley, and to this union were born three chil- 
dren : Lura, the wife of Robert Bayliss; Anda, deceased, and Elvin, who 
lives with his father. Mrs. Busby died in April, 1910. Mr. Busby has 
been a keen business farmer and now is the owner of one hundred and 
seventy-nine acres of excellent farming land in Liberty township, this county. 
He has been a life-long Democrat and a loyal member of the Missionary 
Baptist church from earliest manhood. 

Robert Bayliss has followed agricultural pursuits in this county all his 
life. His boyhood days were spent in Liberty township, w^here he attended 
school and before reaching manhood he lived in Center township. He then 
spent one year in Marion township, where he rented a farm, and later returned 
to Liberty township and remained there for seven years. While in Liberty 
township he was married and in the same year moved to Franklin township, 
on his father-in-law's farm, and here he remained until 1903, when he re- 
turned to Liberty township and bought his present farm. He has forty-nine 
acres of excellent farming land, valued at one hundred and fifty dollars 
an acre. He keeps everything about his place in excellent repair and his 
place presents a very attractive appearance at all times. 

Mr. Bayliss is a member of the Improved Order of Red Men, at Hazel- 
wood, and of the Pocahontas Lodge of the same place. Politically, he is a 
Democrat, but has never been active in his party. He and his wife are 
loyal members of the Baptist church, at Hazelwood, and Mr. Bayliss has 



326 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

been a deacon in the church for the last two years. He and his wife are 
both faithful workers in the church and give liberally of their time and money 
to further the interests of the Gospel and the church in this community. 
Mr. Bayliss is congenial in his manner and has won a host of friends in this 
community. He is honest, frank and unassuming and is a man who is ad- 
mired by everyone with whom he comes in contact. 



JOHN W. HOLLA WAY. 



The gentleman whose name heads this paragraph is widely known in 
Hendricks county, being one of the honored citizens of Brown township, 
where he is living Cjuietly after a strenuous life of activity in connection with 
agricultural pursuits. His well directed efforts in the practical affairs of life, 
his capable management of his business interests and his sound judgment, have 
brought to him prosperity and his life demonstrates what may be accom- 
plished by any man of energy and ambition who is not afraid to work and 
has the perseverance to continue his labors in the face of any disaster or 
discouragement that may arise. In all the relations of life, Mr. Hollaway has 
commanded the confidence and respect of those with whom he has been 
brought into contact and a biographical history of this locality would be 
incomplete without a record of his career. 

John W. Hollaway is a native of this county, having been born on March 
24. 1844, in the southwest corner of Brown township, the son of Joseph 
and Elizabeth ( Coole) Hollaway, the former of whom was a native of the 
state of Virginia, the latter being a Hoosier by birth. Joseph Hollaway, while 
still a small lad. was brought to the state of Indiana by his parents, where 
his father, William Hollaway, entered government land near the city of 
Indianapolis. When a young man, in Virginia, William Hollaway served 
during the Revolutionary War. When Joseph Hollaway became of age, he 
came to Hendricks county and entered the land where in later years the 
subject of this sketch was born. He purchased one hundred and sixty- 
four acres at that time, giving about one dollar and a half per acre, and 
in order to have the papers in the transfer properly made out it was necessary 
for him to go to the then small village of Crawfordsville, a considerable 
distance, which he covered on foot through what was then almost a wilder- 
ness.- The land which he then purchased still remains in the Hollaway family, 
never having been owned under any other name. Joseph Hollaway lived 



HENDRICKS COUNTY^ INDIANA. 32/ 

on his newly acquired land for about five years before uniting in marriage 
with Elizabeth Coole, daughter of Frederick Coole, who was one of the 
early settlers near Indianapolis. Their entire married life was passed on 
the one place and there they reared their family of eight children. Joseph 
Hollaway passed from this life in August, 1895, ^"^ his wafe lived until 
in February, 1901. 

John W. Hollaway lived under the paternal roof until he was thirty 
vears old. when he built his present home, just north of the old home- 
stead and across the public highway. In December, 1873, he was united in 
marriage with Mary Ann Rice, daughter of Louis and Sophia (Harris) Rice, 
both of whom were natives of Kentucky. They came from families quite 
prominent in their respective communities in their native state, both being 
slave holders and people in good circumstances. The father of Sophia 
Harris Rice w^as William Harris, who upon coming to the state of Indiana 
entered a tract of government land where Clermont, Indiana, now is. He 
later disposed of that and entered land on which the northw^est portion 
of the town of Brownsburg now stands. Louis Rice also entered govern- 
ment land about one mile north of the town of Brownsburg, and there 
he passed the remainder of his life. 

To John W. Hollaway and w^ife were born three children, one of whom 
is still living. This is their son, Wilbert Forrest, who took as his wife 
May Offit, daughter of Alexander and May (Kelley) Offit, both natives 
of the Hoosier state. Wilbert and wife are the parents of four children, 
Russell, Esther and Byron, and a little daughter. Gladys, who died when ten 
years of age. One other child of Mr. and Mrs. Hollaway grew to maturity. 
This was their daughter Lena Leota, who became the wife of Wilbert Canary. 
She was the mother of one child. Paul Orlopp Canary, who was but fifteen 
months old when his mother died. He was then taken into the home of Mr. 
and Mrs. Hollaway and is at present attending the Brownsburg high school 
and is a promising boy in his third year's work. 

Both the subject of this sketch and his wife are members of the Chris- 
tian church and are sincerely interested in the work of same. They live 
beautiful, consistent lives and their home radiates the warmth and cheer in 
the hearts of its owners. Mr. Hollaway has devoted the energies of his 
entire life to the vocation of farming and at present owns two hundred 
and forty acres of land, the majority being located in Brown township, all 
of which is in an excellent state of cultivation, showing care and close at- 
tention to modern methods of agriculture and the proper rotation of crops. 
Besides his farm, Mr. Hollaway owns property in Brownsburg, and while 



328 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

he has shown business ability of a high order and a proper desire to further 
his own interests, he has never lost sight of the essential qualities of a well 
rounded manhood and today is one of the most highly respected and esteemed 
citizens of his community. His quiet but kindly disposition has won for him 
friends all over the county, while the well regulated life he has led entitles 
him to representation in a biographical work of the scope intended in the 
present one. 



FRED E. WARNER. 



It is a generally acknowledged fact that journalism is one of the most 
important factors in twentieth-century life, exerting as it does an influence 
on practically every department of society. This relation is just as actual 
and potent in the smaller cities and towns as in the larger cities, and he who 
directs the policy of a newspaper, or wields the pen which gives expression 
to that policy, exerts a personal control over local thought and action not 
equalled by any other profession. Among the newspaper men of Hendricks 
county, Indiana, who have, by their progressive attitude toward local affairs, 
contributed in a very definite measure to the advancement of the community, 
is the gentleman whose name appears above and who is successfully publish- 
ing the Friday Caller at Plainfield, Indiana. 

Fred E. Warner was born in Danville, in this county, on December 22, 
1865. His parents were Dr. John T. and Mary R. (Rose) Warner, the 
father being a native of Long Island, New York, and the mother of Ken- 
tucky. His father came to this state before the Civil War and here met his 
future wife. Upon the outbreak of the war he became a surgeon in a New 
York regiment and served throughout that conflict in the cavalry branch of 
the service. Immediately after the close of the war he returned to Hendricks 
county and practiced medicine in Danville and Winchester until 1870. In 
that year he went to Neosho Falls, Kansas, his family following him one 
year later, and his death occurred there September 10, 1875. One year later 
his family returned to Danville, where his wife died in 1909. Doctor and 
Mrs. Warner were the parents of three children: Fred E., the eldest; Russell 
D., of Danville, and Clyde L., a merchant of Muncie, Indiana. 

Fred E. Warner received a good education in the common schools, 
graduating from the high school in Danville in 1883, then becoming a student 
in the Central Normal College at Danville for a short time. His newspaper 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 329 

career began on February 14, 1884, the day on which he began working as 
a printer in the office of the Danville Repiihlican. This means that for 
twenty years he has been connected with the printing business and during 
that time he has been in close touch with every phase of the work. On 
September 9, 1904. the Plainficld Friday Caller was estabHshed iDy P. W. 
Raidabaugh, and Air. Warner had charge of the Danville office of the Friday 
Caller for six years. In June, 19 12, he went to Plainfield as the managing 
editor of the paper, and on August i, 191 3. Air. Warner became sole pro- 
prietor of this paper, and is now publishing it as a Repul^lican weekly paper. 

Mr. Warner was married January 4, 1893, to Julia S. Thompson, of 
Danville, the daughter of Jesse Thompson, and to this union there has been 
born one son, Clifford T., who is now a student at DePauw University, where 
he is a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity. Mr. Warner is a member of 
the Presbyterian church and has been for twenty-five years. He was former- 
ly a member of the board of deacons in this denomination. For the past 
seven years he has had charge of the music at the Christian church in Dan- 
ville. 

A sketch of the life of Mr. Warner would not be complete without more 
than passing mention of his evangelistic work. For more than twenty-five 
years he has had evangelistic singing work of character every year. In the 
winter of 1911-12 he was with the J. Wilbur Chapman and Charles Alexander 
party for fourteen weeks in Chicago, Toronto and Brooklyn. In the fol- 
lowing year he was with Dr. Edwin S. Stucker, of Ottawa, Kansas, in Wash- 
ington City, D. C, and Brooklyn. He has also worked over the states of 
Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Wisconsin and Michigan. During his 
singing and evangelistic work with various evangelists he gained fame as a 
tenor singer and does a large amount of concert w^ork. 

Mr. Warner has been a member of the Knights of Pythias since he was 
twenty-one years of age, and is also a member of the local camp of the Sons 
of Veterans. Politically, he has always been allied with the Republican 
party and has served his party in various capacities many times. He is at 
the present time secretary of the Republican county central committee. The 
only official position he ever held in the county was treasurer of the town of 
Danville. Mr. Warner is not only a well-trained newspaper man, a first- 
class musician and a believer in pure politics, but he is widely informed on 
all current topics. He is honest and upright in all his relations with his 
fellow men, and today few citizens of Hendricks county are better knoAxnn 
and none more highly respected, for in all phases of his career since making 



330 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

his home here he has performed his full part as a man among men, and has 
earned and retains the sincere regard and confidence of all who know him. 
Personally, he is genial and unassuming, easily makes friends and enjoys 
a large acquaintance throughout the county. 



GEORGE W. McHAFFIE. 

Fortunate, indeed, is the family which has a history extending back more 
than three generations. The McHaffie family has an unbroken record going 
back more than three generations and including several hundred descendants. 
George W. McHaffie, the son of Melville F. and Mary Ann McHaffie, was 
born in Morgan county, Indiana, February 25, 1856. It is interesting to 
note that, although he was born in Morgan county, the part of the county 
in which he was born is now a part of Putnam county. Melville F. McHaffie 
was born in Knoxville, Tennessee, December 27, 1826, and his wife in 
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Melville came to Hendricks county with his 
father in 1832, his mother having died in Tennessee, and his father settled 
upon a farm west of Stilesville. When they first came to the county they 
lived in a tent for a time, and then they put up a rude log house in which 
they lived for several years. Melville attended the subscription schools of 
the neighborhood and was taught the rudiments of the three R's. Eventually 
he became a great buyer of mules and had more mules Ijranded for the 
government than any man in the state. At one time he, was also the largest 
land owner in the counties of Putnam and Hendricks, owning more than 
two thousand five hundred acres of land in the two counties. His death oc- 
curred on May 27, 19 14. 

Melville McHaffie was married to Mary Ann Thomas, the daughter of 
John and Catherine (Ulrich) Thomas, and to this union there were born ten 
children: Florence, who married Charles W. Bridges; Virginia, who married 
Thomas Bogges and has one son, Bennett; Minnie, who married Dr. N. G. 
blasters and has one son, Alexander ; Andrew, who died at the age of seven- 
teen; Clementine, who died in infancy; Marcus, who died at the age of 
three ; Oscar, who married Mary Leachman and has one son, Melville J. ; 
Ernest, who married Anna Greer and has three children, Ernestine, Robert 
and Maxine; Ernestine married Harry Thorpe, of Cartersburg; Mary E., 
who married John F. Shields and has one son, John ]\I. 

George W. McHaffie attended the district schools of his township and 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 33 1 

after leaving school became associated Avith his father in the live-stock 
business. At the age of twenty-one, June 13, 1877, he was married to Emma 
Cosner, the daughter of Samuel and Nancy (Walls) Cosner, and to this 
union there have been born two children, Marion Catherine and Mary Ann. 
Marion married Harry Tincher and Mary Ann married George L. Englehart 
and has one daughter, Emma Catherine. 

Andrew and Nancy (Woods) McHaffie. the paternal grandparents 
of Mr. AIcHaffie, were both natives of Tennessee, and to them were born 
three children, Melville, Emeline and Jane. After the death of his first 
wife, Andrew married Nancy Hackett and to this marriage was born Mary An- 
geline. Emeline married William Robards and has three children, Andrew, 
Augusta and Laura. Jane died at the age of ten. Mary A. married Harvey 
Lee and has four children ; Margaret, deceased, Charles Herbert, Edward and 
James. 

The parents of Samuel Cosner's wife were James and Mary Walls, 
Samuel being born in North Carolina and his wife in Lidiana. He came 
to this county in 1829 with his parents and settled in Franklin township, 
where his father entered one hundred and sixty acres of government land. 
Samuel Cosner was a farmer and wagonmaker all his life, but spent the 
latter years of his life in farming. He was born on March 31, 1825, and 
died on May 29, 1892. His wife was born April 17, 1831, and died May 2, 
1902. To Samuel Cosner and wife were born three children: Emma, the 
wife of Mr. McHaffie; Annetta, the wife of William A. Snoddy. She has 
three children, Ethel, George and Nancy ; Otis S. married Ida Hammond and 
has three children, Samuel, Radnor, deceased, and one other. 

The grandfather, Anthony Cosner, was born in North Carolina, April 
7, 1799, and died in March, 1888. He married Catherine Phillips, who was 
born September 27, 1799, and died on August 25, 1873. To this union were 
born ten children, John, Mahlon, Samuel, Lucinda, Elizabeth, Lucv, Sarah, 
William, Anna and Phoebe. John married Louise Whicker and after her 
death he married Louisa Rolley. Mahlon married Catherine Boswell and 
after her death married Susan Weavel. Samuel, the father of the subject 
of this sketch, married Nancy Walls. Lucinda married Aloses Stanley and 
after his death* she married Austin Williams. Elizabeth and Lucy both died 
in infancy. Sarah married William Page and after his death she married 
William Wilhite. William married Sarah Hine. Anna and Phoebe died in 
childhood. 

George W. McHaffie has been a Democrat all his voting days and al- 
though he has never taken an active part in politics, he has been an active 



332 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

participant in local conventions. He is a member of the Free and Accepted 
Masons, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Improved Order of 
Red Men. Owing to the upright life he has led in this community, he is. 
held in high regard by his fellow citizens. 



WILLIAM CHANDLER. 



Every one of the thirteen original colonies contributed to the population 
of Indiana, and, as was the case in the early history of the states, it was only 
the most ambitious and enterprising families in the East who ventured to 
this new territory in the West. When Fox started a new religion in England 
and his followers became known as Quakers, or Friends, no one would have 
thought that this new society would play such an important part in the 
early history of Indiana. When the Friends first came to the United States 
they settled in Pennsylvania, but later on large numbers of them settled in 
North Carolina. When it was seen in the early part of the nineteenth cen- 
tury that North Carolina was determined to remain a slave state, there were 
thousands of these good Friends who left that state and emigrated to free 
territory. It was from North Carolina that the Friends in Wayne county came, 
and Hendricks county owes an everlasting debt of gratitude to North Car- 
olina for sending to its borders some of the best pioneers of this county. 
Among the many members of this church who came to Hendricks county, 
the Chandler family were among the most prominent. 

William Chandler was born in Hendricks county, Indiana, on May 24, 
1 85 1. His parents were Jacob and Mary (Picket) Chandler. Jacob Chand- 
ler came to Indiana with his parents when he was four years of age and 
at first settled in Wayne county near Richmond. Shortly afterwards his 
parents came to Hendricks county and entered land in Guilford township, 
within the first five years after Hendricks county was organized. Jacob 
Chandler was born in North Carolina in 1819, came to Indiana in 1823 and 
married in 1844. Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Chandler were the parents of three 
sons: John, a retired farmer of this township; Hadley, deceased, and Will- 
iam, whose history is herewith portrayed. By her former marriage to 
Joab Hadley, Mrs. Chandler had five children. Mr. and Mrs. Chandler both 
died, he in 1892 and she in 1895. 

William Chandler received his early education in his home neighborhood 
and early in life began to work on his father's farm. He continued to work 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 333 

on the farm until his marriage, when he began to operate a farm of his own. 
During his whole career he has lived the life of the simple farmer, going 
through the daily and yearly routine which is common to every man in this 
occupation, and year by year adding to his possession, until at the present 
time he has a fine farm of two hundred and ten acres. 

Mr. Chandler has been thrice married, his first marriage being to Indiana 
Townsend on December 31, 1874: she died October 15, 1889, leaving no 
children, and on April 2, 1891, Mr. Chandler was married to Anna Star- 
buck, who died October 14, 1895. He was married to Martha E. Hadley on 
November 4, 1896. She was the daughter of Amos and Sallie V. Hadley, 
and one of six children. There have been no children by any of these mar- 
riages. 

Mr. Chandler has been a life-long member of the Prohibition party, feel- 
ing that in the abolition of all intoxicating licjuors should be found the 
greatest aid to the advancement of the welfare of our country. Mr. Chandler, 
as well as all of his ancestors, has been identified with the Friends church 
and to this he has always contributed liberally. Mr. Chandler is a man 
who has always been found contending; in fact, he would adhere to a convic- 
tion if all the world were against him. He lives in a comfortable home, where 
the spirit of genuine old-time hospitality is always in evidence, and because of 
his genial disposition and manly qualities of character he is held in the high- 
est esteem bv all who know him. 



DENNIS BRADLEY WILLIAMS. 

There is no positive rule for achieving success, and yet in the life of 
the successful man there are always lessons which might well be followed. 
The man who gains prosperity is he who can see and utilize the opportunities 
that come in his path. The essential conditions of human life are ever the 
same, the surroundings of individuals differ but slightly, and when one man 
passes another on the highway of life to reach the goal of prosperity before 
others who perhaps started out before him, it is because he has the power to 
use advantages which probably encompass the whole human race. Among 
the well-known citizens of this county whose efforts have been directed 
toward successful agriculture, is the immediate subject of this sketch. 

Dennis Bradley Williams is a native of this county, born August 23, 
1868, in Middle township, southwest of Pittsboro, the son of John Dennis 



334 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

and Elizabeth Jane (King) Williams, l)oth of whom were natives of Ken- 
tucky, the former coming from Estill county and the latter from Fleming 
county. Both came to Hendricks county in their early childhood, being 
brought here by their respective parents. John Dennis Williams was a son 
of William Williams, Jr., and Margaret Bradley, his wife, who was born 
]\Iarch i6, 1812, John Dennis being born in 1835. On February 28, 1858, he 
was united in marriage' to Elizabeth Jane King, who was born July 2, 1840, 
the daughter of Enoch Wesley King, born in 181 2, and Lucy Ann (Campbell) 
King, born April 23, 181 5. Lucy A. Campbell was an aunt of Leander M. 
Campbell, one of our country's greatest lawyers. Enoch King and family 
settled first near Brownsburg and later moved near Pittsboro, where his 
death occurred in 1872, his wife living until December 21, 1877. William 
Williams. Jr., grandfather of the immediate subject, was born in 1809, and 
was a son of William Williams, Sr. After the marriage of John D. Will- 
iams, father of the subject, he purchased a tract of forty acres in Middle 
township, all of which was covered with dense forest. This was immediately 
adjoining his father's farm. In order to prepare a site for his one-room log 
cabin, size eighteen by twenty feet, he was obliged to fell twenty-four trees, 
so thick was the growth. He cleared the land of the timber, fenced and cul- 
tivated it and lived there until about 1870, when he sold it and moved midway 
between Danville and Lizton, where he purchased a farm of eighty acres. 
He remained there for about ten years, when he traded that for another 
eighty-acre tract just south of Pittsboro, near his old home, and took up his 
residence there in 1881. About three years later he bought a home in Browns- 
burg, where he lived until 1895, at the same time continuing the operation 
of his farm and his business of dealing in live stock. After selling his 
property in Brownsburg he purchased another eighty-acre farm, two miles 
from that town, and there lived until his death, November 30, 1897. He 
took a commendable interest in community affairs and was for many years 
a faithful member of Mount Zion Baptist church. The widow, who had made 
her home with her son, William West Williams, just south of Pittsboro, 
died May zy, 1914, aged sevent}'-three years, ten months, twenty-five days. 

Dennis Bradley Williams, the immediate subject of this sketch, remained 
under the paternal roof until he was twenty-two years old. From his early 
youth he had farmed for himself, renting land in the neighborhood, and 
when his father moved west of Brownsburg, he then farmed that tract for 
him. . He bought out the rights of the other heirs, after the death of the 
father, and now owns the eighty acres himself. In 1908 he erected a new 
dwelling, barns, etc., near the road and has since occupied them. Mr. Will- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 335 

iams has been twice married, his first wife being Minnie B. Smith, to whom he 
was united in marriage on October 5, 1890. She was the daughter of Andrew J. 
and Cynthia Smith and passed from this life on January 8, 1893, their union 
having been without issue. On March 6, 1898, Mr. Williams was again 
united in marriage, his bride this time being Luey J. Warren, who was born 
in Perry township, Boone county, this state, daughter of W^illiam H. and 
Rachael D. (Peters) Warren, the former having been born at Knoxville, 
Tennessee, on April 29, 1837. He was a son of William and Lydia (Mc- 
Caslin) Warren and a brother of Calvin W. Warren, a sketch of whose life 
will be found elsewhere in this volume, giving particulars about parents and 
ancestors. William H. W^arren was a boy of about ten years when the parents 
decided on making Indiana their future home. They loaded their possessions 
into a wagon and drove through. At that time there were eight children in 
the family. William and some of the larger children walked beside the 
wagon all the way, except when fording streams. He grew to manhood in 
Brown township, this county, and lived part of the time in Marion county, 
near Bridgeport. He married Rachael D. Peters, a native of Morgan county, 
this state, and the daughter of Presley Peters, who was a son of William 
Peters. William Peters had owned a large estate in Pennsylvania, which land 
is now thought to be covered by the city of Harrisburg, and he owned other 
land besides. After his death his son, Presley, started to prove his title to 
this land and died before he succeeded in completing his claim, and therefore 
the heirs failed to get this valuable land. 

After his marriage to Rachael Peters, William H. Warren farmed in 
Boone county until about 1894, when he sold his farm there and moved two 
miles west of Brownsburg. where he purchased a farm and has since resided. 

To the subject and his wife have been born two children, Russell E., 
born August 13, 1907, and Elbert Wesley, born December 25, 1910. When 
John D. Williams, father of the subject, started in life for himself, he was 
wholly without funds and bought a tract of wild land for six hundred dollars 
on credit. He built a little cabin home and from that pushed his way onward 
to success. He was of a jovial and sunny disposition and had many friends 
and was widely known. He had but few advantages in the way of schooling 
when a youth, but was highly intelligent and actively interested in pul:)lic affairs. 
He possessed a sound judgment which was invaluable to him and of great 
assistance to his many friends who relied on his advice. He was a man with- 
out malice, sociable and friendly, a devout Christian and unusually well versed 
in the Bible for a man of his educational advantages. 



336 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Airs. Williams is a very methodical woman; she reads the Bible through 
once a year and has read it to her husband. She has an excellent memory 
and kept a written account of all affairs of interest. 



JOHN WALTER LAIRD. ' 

Not too often can be repeated the life history of one who 'has lived so 
honorable and useful a life and attained to such notable distinction as he 
whose name appears at the head of this sketch, one of the most successful 
and distinguished educators that the state of Indiana has produced. His 
character has been one of signal exaltation and purity of purpose. Well 
disciplined in mind, maintaining a vantage point from which life has pre- 
sented itself in correct proportions, guided and guarded by the most inviolable 
principles of integrity and honor, simple and unostentatious in his self- 
respecting, tolerant individuality, such a man could not prove other than a 
force for good in whatever relation of life he may have been placed. His 
character is the positive expression of a strong nature and in studying his 
career interpretation follows fact in a straight line of derivation, there being 
no need for indirection or puzzling. His career has been a busy one and 
his name is respected by all who have had occasion to come in contact with 
him or who have knowledge of his life work. As an educator. President 
Laird stands in the front rank in Indiana. He has dignified and honored 
his profession, for his life has been one of consecration to his calling, and 
well does he merit a place of honor in every history touching upon the 
lives and deeds of those who have given the best of their powers and 
talents for the betterment of their kind. 

John Walter Laird, president of Central Normal College, Danville, 
Indiana, was born in Oswega, Kansas, September 2, 187 1, and is the son 
of Alvin and Levina Rebecca (Somsel) Laird, both parents being natives 
of Ohio. His father served three and one-half years in the Civil War in 
Company H, Ninety-third' Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and was 
mustered out as a corporal in his regiment. After the close of the war 
he returned to Ohio, where he engaged in farming. In 1882 he removed 
to How^ard county, Indiana, and continued his farming operations there 
until his death in 1909, at the age of sixty-three years, his wife dying the 
same year. He was commander of the Grand Army of the Republic post 
at Galveston, and a trustee in the Universalist church in the same place. 




JOHN W. LAIRD 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 337 

To Mr. and Mrs. Alvin Laird were born eight children : D. C, a farmer 
Hving near Lucerene, Cass county, Indiana; John W., the immediate sub- 
ject of this sketch; Charles, deceased in 1909; Frank, a carpenter of Ko- 
komo; Lola R., who was the wife of Albert Downhour, of Cass county, this 
state, but who died in 1913; Homer Lester, of Fullerton, North Dakota; 
Jennie, deceased at the age of sixteen, and Joseph, who died in infancy. 

John \\\ Laird was born on a ranch near Osw^ego, Labette county, 
Kansas, to which place his parents had moved soon after their marriage. 
He received his primary education in West Sonora, Preble county, Ohio, 
where his parents had removed when he was a small lad. His educational 
training was continued in the Galveston schools in Cass county, this state, 
and he graduated from the high school at that place in 1891. He im- 
mediately began teaching in the district schools of his county, attending 
the county normal school at Kokomo during the summer months. In the 
spring of 1893 he entered the Indiana State Normal School at Terre Haute, 
Indiana, and continued his studies there until the fall of 1895, when he 
accepted the superintendency of the Galveston schools. He continued at 
the head of the schools of this place for one year, when he returned to the 
State Normal School and graduated in the spring of 1897. Upon finishing 
his course he accepted the position as head of the history department at 
the Alarion Normal School, where he remained until August, 1898. In 
September of that year he entered the junior class at the State University 
at Bloomington, and graduated in August, 1900, majoring in the subject 
of philosophy. Upon his graduation from the university he returned to 
the Marion Normal School in 1900 as the head of the history department 
and also had general charge of the department of 'education. He remamed 
on the faculty of the normal school until August, 1906, when he left to 
enter Harvard University in order to continue his studies in history and 
economics under Professors Channing, Hart and Taussig, of that institu- 
tion. After completing one year's residence in study at Harvard, he was 
elected vice-president of the Central Normal College at Danville, Indiana, 
and one year later became the acting president of the same institution. 
In 1909 he was elected president by the board of trustees and has since 
been the head of the school. Professor Laird has brought to the presidency 
a mind and body both well fitted for the complex duties connected there- 
with, for, be it emphasized, the office of an institution like this is no sinecure. 
The growth of the Central Normal College since President Laird became its 
(22) 



338 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

head is the highest testimonial that could be paid to his ability and fore- 
sight as an executive and to his eminent standing as a broad-minded, 
scholarly and progressive educator. Since assuming the responsible position 
which he now holds and so signally honors, the advancement of the college 
has kept pace with the leading institutions of the kind in the United States. 
The course of study has been developed and the state board of education has 
recognized the superior quality of work which is being done in the institu- 
tion. It has been accredited as one of the standard normal schools and also 
has an approved school of music. President Laird's slogan for the "Greater 
C. N. C." has not been used in vain, for within the short time in which 
he has had charge of the institution its growth has been truly remarkable. 
It is admittedly one of the best normal schools in the country and its work 
is of a standard which compares favorably with similar institutions every- 
where. At the present time there are good prospects for a new building, and 
within the next year or so the college will enter upon a new era of pros- 
perity. President Laird exercises the greatest care over the buildings and 
grounds, looks after the comfort and welfare of the students and is indeed 
proud of his school and jealous of its good name and reputation. It is 
easily understood why he enjoys such great popularity with all connected 
with the institution, and is well and favorably known to the educational 
circles throughout the country. President Laird has made special study 
of the subjects of history and economics and has also done wide and in- 
tensive reading in the field of English literature. His services are in signal 
demand as an instructor in township and county institutes, where he gives 
lectures on English literature and history. He also gives a large number 
of commencement addresses each year throughout the state. President 
Laird is much interested in the study of nature and his beautiful home is 
at the edge of Danville, where he makes a specialty of raising fine poultry 
and different kinds of small fruits. He now has more than fifty different 
kinds of apples on his farm. He has also made a special study of birds 
and has many different kinds nesting on his home place. 

John W. Laird was married on August 15, 1900. to Daisy E. Lowder, 
the eldest daughter of Dr. Lindsay Lowder, of Bloomington, Indiana, and 
to his happy marriage there have been born three children : Alice Rebecca, 
born 1902 and died in infancy; Mary Elizabeth, born in 1905, and Martha 
May, born in 1908. Mrs. Laird is a woman of gracious and charming 
personality and their home is the center of a large social circle. 

President Laird and his wife are members of the jMethodist Episcopal 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 339 

.church and are earnest and faithful in the observance of their reHgious 
obhgations and privileges. Personally, President Laird is genial and easily 
approached and enjoys to a marked degree the confidence of all who are 
thrown in contact with him. Though first of all an educator, and making 
his work as such paramount to every other consideration, he has not been 
remiss in his duty to the community in which he resides nor unmindful of 
his obligations as a citizen. Although he is a Republican in politics on 
national issues, he is not a strict partisan and, particularly in local affairs, 
gives his support to the best qualified candidate irrespective of partv lines. 
He is a member of the Sons of Veterans and the Knights of Pythias, and 
also of the Greek-letter fraternity of Phi Gamma Delta. Though now only 
in the early prime of life, he has achieved success such as only few attain, 
but, not satisfied with past results, he is pressing forward to still wider 
fields and higher honors, although his place among the eminent men of his 
day and generation is secure for all time to come. 



EDGAR E. FOUDRAY. 



The gentleman to whom the reader's attention is now directed was not 
favored by inherited wealth or the assistance of influential friends, but in 
spite of these, by perseverance, industry and a w4se economy, he has attained 
a comfortable station in life, and is well and favorably known throughout 
Hendricks county as a result of the industrious life he has lived here for so 
many years, being- regarded by all who know him as a man of sound business 
principles, thoroughly up to date in all phases of agriculture and stock rais- 
ing and as a man who, while advancing his individual interests, does not 
neglect his general duties as a citizen. 

On the paternal side, the subject's ancestral history is traced as follows : 

(I) John Foudray, the great-great-grandfather, was born in France some 
time during the latter part of the sixteenth century, but, because of the 
Huguenot persecutions by the Catholics, he was compelled to flee from home. 

(II) John Foudray, the great-grandfather, was born in the state of Dela- 
ware about 1737, and he was the father of (III) John Wood Foudray, who 
was born on April 5, 1787. The latter married Martha Martin, who was 
born on November 2, 1787. Among their children was (IV) John Elbert 
Foudray, father of the subject of this sketch, and who was born on March 12, 



34(-> HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

1 817, his death occurring on August 27, 1878, at the age of sixty-one years 
and five months. He married AdeHa Green, who was born on March 23, 
181 7, the daughter of Moses and EHzabeth Green. Her death occurred on 
April 12, 1895, at the age of seventy-eight years. Of the children born to 
the last-named couple, Charlotte, who became the wife of James A. Morri- 
son, died on January 28, 1878, and James Elbert died on January 16, 19 10. 
The subject's maternal grandfather was killed by Indians when his daughter, 
the subject's mother, was but one year old. 

Edgar E. Foudray, the son of John and Adelia (Green) Foudray, was 
born in Indianapolis, Indiana, Octoljer 20, 1853, and received his education 
in the public schools of that city. He lived there until he was twenty-one 
years of age, when he went to Stephenson county, Illinois, where he mar- 
ried, and there he remained until 1880, when he came to Hendricks county, 
Indiana, and settled in Washington township, on the farm where he now 
lives. While he is a farmer of more than ordinary ability, he has made 
a particular specialty of dairy cattle and conserves his energy in that di- 
rection. He has the most sanitary and up-to-date dairy farm in Washington 
township and one of the best in central Indiana. His products find a ready 
sale in Indianapolis and his plant and equipment has been pronounced by the 
state inspectors as one of the best in the state. 

Mr. Foudray was married October 20, 1874, to Emma A. Wolfe, the 
daughter of Michael and Flettie (Cable) Wolfe. Mrs. Foudray was born 
in Stephenson county, Illinois, and is one of the oldest of twelve children. 
They were married while Mr. Foudray was living in Illinois. To Mr. and 
Mrs. Foudray have been born eight children: Esther L., born September i, 
1875, and died November 2, 1881 ; Mrs. Ida M. Hadley, born August 11, 
[876, now living in Minnesota; Mrs. Lottie M. Davis, born November 5, 
1878, now living in Indianapolis; Mrs. Carrie A. Miller, born July 9, 1881, 
now resides in Central City, Iowa ; Mrs. Emma G. Coleman, born November 
7, 1884, now living in Indianapolis; Mrs. Martha C. Stiles, born March 9, 
1887, also a resident of Indianapolis; Edgar E., born December 8, 1889, who 
is still under the parental roof; A^Irs. Marietta E. McClellan, born April 6, 
1893, lives on a farm in Marion county, this state. 

Politically, Mr. Foudray is a Democrat, ' and takes an active interest 
in the affairs of his party. Religiously, he and his family are faithful and 
consistent members, of the Methodist Episcopal church, to which they give 
their active support. 

Mr. Foudray' s life has been an active and busy one and the systematic 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 341 

and honorable business methods which he has followed have succeeded in 
gaining him the confidence of those with whom he has had business dealings, 
and the respect and esteem of all who know him. 



ROLLIE GARNER. 



There is no calling, however humble or exalted, but what may be pro- 
ductive of some measure of success, if enterprise and industry, coupled with 
a well directed purpose, form the motive force of the person directing the 
same, and in no case is this fact more apparent than in agricultural pursuits. 
This fact applies to Rollie Garner, the immediate subject of this sketch, who, 
by industry and honesty, is succeeding well in his chosen vocation and who, 
while applving himself primarily to the interests of his family, has so ordered 
his mode of life as to win the esteem of those with whom he comes in con- 
tact and in every avenue of life has proven himself a worthy citizen. 

Rollie Garner is a native of this county, born on April 23, 1870, m 
Brown township, the son of Harrison B.and Frances (Lowder) Garner. 
Harrison Garner was born in Kentucky, in 1828, the son of Solomon and 
Deborah Garner, who came to this county in 1832 and settled on the farm 
near where the subject was born. They entered this land from the govern- 
ment, cleared it and established a happy home, where they lived the balance 
of their lives. Frances Lowder, mother of the subject, was a native of North 
Carolina, born in 1832. the daughter of Solomon and Sarah Lowder. In 
1836 the Lowder family came to this county and settled southwest of Browns- 
burg. A few years later, her father started back to North Carolina on horse- 
back, to settle an estate in which he was interested, and was never heard 
from again. The mystery of his disappearance has been unexplained through 
all these years. When the family first came here, they made the journey 
overland in wagons, and upon settling in this county they entered land from 
the government, and here the widow passed her remaining days and the family 
grew to maturity. After Harrison Garner's marriage he took up his resi- 
dence on the farm which his father obtained in pioneer days, and died there 
in 1902. His wife followed him into the great beyond in 1907. There were 
nine children in the family, of whom the subject was the youngest and he 
was twenty-eight vears old before there occurred a death in the family. 

In 1894, on March 4th, the subject was united in marriage with Ella 
HufTord, who was born in Lincoln township, the daughter of Gideon Franklin 



342 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Hiifford and wife. For four years previous to marriage Mr. Garner had 
farmed his father's farm on shares and for two years after his marriage this 
sanie arrangement held good. He then moved to Washington township, one 
mile east of Avon, and for four years farmed on land given him by his 
father-in-law. Here he built a house and in September, 1900, he moved to 
his present location, a farm of seventy-five and one-half acres two miles 
west of Brownsburg. To Mr. and Mrs. Garner have been born ten children, 
of whom the eldest, Hazel Marie, born in 1896, passed away on February 
8, 1898. Those remaining are Edna Blanche, Bernice, Irene. Hul^ert Frank- 
lin, Mabel and Merle, twins ; Harrison Harold, Inez Roberta, Lois Ernestine, 
Edith Frances and Johanna Lee. 

Mr. Garner's fraternal affiliation is with the Knights of Pythias, of 
which he has been a member for some time. He is a man of marked domestic 
traits, kind and considerate to his family, honest and reliable in all his deal- 
ings and a thoroughly good, helpful neighbor. Because of his genial disposi- 
tion and genuine worth he is liked and respected by all. 



JOHN A. GIBBS. 



John A. Gibbs, whose life history now comes under brief review, is one 
of the solid men of brain and substance who in the aggregate have given to 
Hendricks county, Indiana, the excellent reputation which it bears for pros- 
perity and a high plane of life among the sister counties of the state. After 
all. the history of a community is but the reflection of the lives of its lead- 
ing citizens and it is such stalwart men as he whose sketch the biographer 
now takes up, who are the bone and sinew of the moral, material and educa- 
tional life of this county. 

John A. Gibbs, well known farmer of Lincoln township, Hendricks 
county, was born in Brown township, this county, February 4, 1868, being 
the son of William Gibbs, born in 1825, and Elizabeth (Burden) Gibbs, born 
in 1826. Both parents were natives of England, w^here they remained until 
after their marriage, when, desiring to try their fortunes in the New World, 
they left their native heath and landed on American soil about the year 1850. 
They came almost directly to Bridgeport, this state, where he engaged in 
gardening and remained there for several years. About the year 1867 they 
came to this country, locating in Brown township, where he farmed the rest 
of his life. William Gibbs departed this life on November 24, 1903, in his 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 343 

eightieth year, and his wife passed away some years before him, on April 
28, 1897, at the age of seventy-one years. He had ahgned himself with the 
Democra,tic party upon becoming an American citizen and was a faithful 
member of the Methodist church, his wife being identified with the Baptist 
church. 

John A. Gibbs grew to manhood on the homestead in Brown, township, 
attending the district schools of the locality and receiving from his father 
careful training in the secrets of successful husbandry. He has been en- 
gaged in farming all his life and remained in Brown township until in 191 1, 
when he went to Marion county, this state, where he only remained for one 
year and in the spring of 191 2 moved to his present home in the southeastern 
part of Lincoln township, where he has since resided. In 1891 he was united 
in marriage with Catherine Hogan, who. was born and reared in Brown town- 
ship, being the daughter of Michael and Bridget (Cassidy) Hogan, both of 
whom were natives of Ireland, the former born in county Conemaugh and the 
latter in county Galway. There they grew up and were married before com- 
ing to America. This was prior to the Civil War and they came immedi- 
ately to this county upon arriving in the country and here lived the remainder 
of their days. They owned a farm of eighty acres and it was here the wife 
of the subject was born. Michael Hogan passed from this life on June 24, 
1912, his wife having preceded him on November 27, 1911. Both were 
Catholic. 

Mr. and Mrs. Gibbs have three living children, the eldest being William, 
who was born May 28, 1892. He is a graduate of the Brownsburg high 
school, attended the State Normal School at Terre Haute for two years and 
is at present finishing his third term as teacher in the schools of the western 
part of Marion county. The second son is Clarence, born July 30, 1894, 
who is his father's assistant in the work of the farm. James, who was born 
March 24, 1897, passed from life June 29, 19 13, at the age of sixteen years 
and four months. Monica Catherine, sole daughter of the family, was bom 
December 13, 1906. Mrs. Gibbs' parents settled in Brown township when it 
was nearly all timber and swamp. They first directed their efforts to mak- 
ing a small clearing and erecting a cabin home and gradually reclaimed the 
land from the wilderness and swamps and improved living conditions as rap- 
idly as they could. By much labor and tireless effort, they in time had made 
of their land a fine farm, one fit to compare with any of its size in the county. 
During the war. Michael Hogan was drafted into the army. In view of the 
fact that he had a wife and five small children, he felt his greater duty was to 
remain beside them and by paying five hundred dollars he secured a substitute. 



344 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

William Gibbs, father of the subject, was twice drafted. He had a wife and 
six children to support and, too, felt that his greater duty was to remain 
home and care for them. Each time he was forced to buy a substitute, cost- 
ing him in all sixteen • hundred dollars and so crippling him financially that 
he lost his farm. 

Mr. and Mrs. Gibbs are both communicants of the Roman Catholic 
church and his fraternal affiliations are with the Improved Order of Red 
Men. His life has been one of unceasing industry and perseverance and the 
systematic and honorable methods which he has ever followed have resulted 
not only in gaining the confidence of those with whom he has had dealings, 
but he has been able to hold friends so gained throughout the years. He is 
a public-spirited man, well and favorably known throughout the township 
for his honesty and uprightness in all his business dealings. 



THAD. S. ADAMS. 



Enjoying distinctive prestige in a profession which requires of those 
who adopt it a strong mentality and painstaking preparation, together with 
a natural aptitude for its duties and responsibilities, Thad S. Adams is one 
of the essentially representative lawyers of Danville. He has built up a 
lucrative clientele and a wide reputation as an able and successful lawyer 
and has been connected with some of the most important cases in the local 
courts. As a public-spirited citizen he readily lends his aid lo every cause 
having for its object the moral and material advancement of his community. 

Thad S. Adams is a native of Hendricks county, born in Union town- 
ship November 6, 1853, the son of Solomon and Nancy (Griffith) Adams. 
Solomon Adams was born in Nicholas county, Kentucky, in 1799, a son of 
Thomas Adams. He grew up in Kentucky and there married Nancy Griffith, 
who was born in Bath county, Kentucky, in 181 1, a daughter of Jackson 
Griffith. While she was a child her parents removed to Switzerland county, 
Indiana, where she grew up. Solomon Adams and wife came to Hendricks 
county in an early day, and he entered government land in Marion township, 
where they lived for some years and then removed to Union township and 
entered other land and established their permanent home. He was a life- 
long farmer and for many years was assessor of Union township. He was 
originally a Douglas Democrat, but from the opening of the war he was a 
Republican, He and his wife were charter members of the Christian church 




THAD S. ADAMS 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 345 

at Lizton. Solomon Adams died in 1863 and two weeks later his wife fol- 
lowed him in death. Of the eleven children born to Solomon and Nancy 
Adams four were in the Union army during our great civil conflict. Ga- 
briel H. Adams and Joshua G. Adams were in the Fifty-first Indiana \"ol- 
unteers. Dr. Thomas J. Adams and Hiram F. Adams were members of 
the Ninth Indiana Cavalry. Hiram was killed in Mississippi while in the 
service. Dr. Thomas J. was in active service until the close of the war, after 
which he located at North Salem, Hendricks county, and is mentioned at 
length elsewhere in this volume. 

Thad S. Adams was but ten years old when death deprived him of his 
parents. For the following two years he lived with a brother in the state 
of Illinois, and then came to North Salem, Hendricks county, and made his 
home with another brother, Dr. Thomas J. Adams. During these years 
he attended the public schools and worked by the month on a farm until he 
was seventeen years of age, when he began teaching school, which enabled 
him to attend Northwestern University at Indianapolis. After leaving the 
university, he came to Danville in 1875 and took up the study of law in 
the office of Adams & Cooper, the senior member of this firm being his 
brother, Joshua G. Adams. While reading law he also taught school for 
two or three years. About 1878 he was admitted to the bar on motion of the 
late Leander M. Campbell, who afterwards became his father-in-law. He 
has been engaged in the practice of law in Danville since that time, and 
during these years has attained to distinctive prominence and success as an 
able advocate and well fortified counselor at law. His course has been such 
as to retain to him at all times the unqualified respect and esteem of his 
professional brethren, as well as the public at large. In 1889 he was ap- 
pointed by' Governor Hovey prosecuting attorney, and his fitness for the 
place was so readily recognized that he was, in 1890, nominated and elected 
for the regular term, thus serving in all four years. 

On May 6, 1880, Mr. Adams was married to Effie A. Campbell, a 
daughter of Leander M. and Ma,tilda (Hammond) Campbell. A sketch 
of Leander M. Campbell appears elsewhere in this work. Mrs. Adams 
was born and reared in Danville, graduating from the Central Normal Col- 
lege with the class of 1879. To this marriage were born three children, 
Ruth Adams, L. M. Campbell Adams and Donald Griffith x\dams, the 
two sons residing in New York City where they are associated with the 
National Surety Company. Miss Ruth is. at home. All three of the children 
are graduates of Indiana University. 



346 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Mrs. Adams was called by death May 14, 191 3. She was a woman of 
rare culture, active in civic and church affairs, and of wonderful executive 
ability. She took a broad and kindly interest in the community welfare, 
and she was beloved by everybod}^ in the community who had known her 
since girlhood. She was a life-long member of the Christian church and 
'active in many departments of church labor. 

Thad S. Adams is a prominent Mason, being identified with the Scottish 
Rite and the Mystic Shrine. He is a man who has always shown a deep 
and abiding interest in all that concerns the welfare and progress of his 
native county, and here he maintains a secure hold upon popular confidence 
and esteem. 



CECIL FORREST PREBSTER. 

Among the younger agriculturists of Hendricks county, Indiana, is 
the subject of this sketch, who, while still a young man, has devoted several 
years to this particular line of effort. The younger generation of farmers 
have started out upon their life work in their chosen vocation with consider- 
able to their advantage over the conditions met by their fathers and grand- 
fathers. The advantages for education are so vastly superior to those en- 
joyed by the youth of an earlier generation, and this education permits 
the men of the present day to profit by the vast experience of others in scien- 
tific research work as related to farm life, whereas those of an earlier time 
were far more handicapped in their chosen work. Then, too, the men of 
the present day find the lands in the Hoosier state at least all prepared for 
their eft'orts. whereas the farmers of ^n earlier day found themselves face to 
face with the gigantic task of removing primeval forests, draining swamps, 
breaking the virgin soil and the thousand and one hardships met with and 
conquered by our pioneers, to whom we of a later day owe an unending ob- 
ligation. 

Cecil Forrest Prebster was born on April 17, 1881, on a farm about 
two miles west of Brownsburg. this county, being land which was origi- 
nally entered from the government by his paternal great-grandfather. He is 
the son of Anderson and Alice Prebster, and is one of a family of two chil- 
dren ; the other is a daughter. Bertha Eleanor, who is the wife of Fred 
Smith, a farmer of this county, and the mother of two sons. Leo Walter and 
]\Iilby Alonzo. Anderson Prebster, father of the immediate subject of 
this sketch, was born in Lincoln township, this county, in 1853, the son of 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 347 

Emanuel and ]Mary (Milby) Hollett-Prebster. Emanuel Prebster was born in 
southern Ohio, the son of John Adam and Christina (Bartlett) Prebster, and 
John Adam Prebster was a native of Germany, w^ho in early days emigrated to 
this country, settling in New York state, where he met and married Chris- 
tina Bartlett, also a native of Germany. They remained for a short time in New 
York, later coming to southern Ohio, where their son, Emanuel, was'born, and 
there remained until he was about twenty-one years of age. Emanuel was the 
oldest of four sons, the others being Reuben, Frederick and Christian, and 
these, together with the father, came to this county about the year 1834, the 
father having entered a tract of land here the year previous. Frederick 
married Eliza Surber and lived in Lincoln township, where for many years 
he was engaged in farming. Reuben and Christian never married and spent 
their lives west of Brownsburg on land which they had entered from the 
government. In 1850 Emanuel Presbter was united in marriage with Mrs. 
]\Iary (Milby) HoUett, widow of Mark Hollett, deceased. She was born 
in North Carolina and was left an orphan through the death of her mother 
while she was still small, and the loss of her father at sea. When about nine 
years old she was brought to this state by an aunt, who settled near Rich- 
mond. At the age of sixteen Mary Milby was united in marriage with Mark 
Hollett and they made their home near Richmond. During the forties they 
came to this county, where they made their home near Brownsburg, and they 
later moved to Iowa, where Mr. Hollett died a victim of cholera. His death 
left his young widow and family of five children among strangers, and Mr. 
Baxter, stepfather of Mark Hollett, made the long journey overland in a 
covered wagon to Iowa, bringing the widow and children back to this vicin- 
ity. Here, sometime later, she was united in marriage with Emanuel Preb- 
ster and they made their home west of Brownsburg on land which had been 
entered from the government by his father, of which he owned one hundred 
and fifty acres. His death occurred in January, 1899, and she died in 1907. 
At their death they left three children, Eliza Christina, Anderson and Ever- 
son. Eliza C. became the wife of John Henderson and lived on the home 
farm which she inherited from her father. She passed from this life Febru- 
ary 6, 19 1 3. Everson Prebster also lives on the home farm where his 
father died. He married Ella Harding and they have two children, Beulah 
and Lessie. 

Anderson Prebster remained under the parental roof until the time of 
his marriage in 1880 to Alice Clark, who was born in Brown county, this 
state, the daughter of Franklin and Mary (Baker) Clark, the former of whom 
was born in Kentucky, where he grew to years of maturity. He then came 



348 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

to this State, where he met and married Mary Baker, who was born not far 
from Indianapohs, daughter of Henry and EHzabeth (Caylor) Baker. 
Henry Baker was a native of Maryland and EHzabeth Caylor was born in 
Ohio. Franklin Clark, father of Alice (Clark) Prebster, was a carpenter 
all his life and followed his trade most of his active years in Indianapolis. 
In 1875 he moved to Brownsburg, where he spent his declining years quietly, 
and there his death occurred in 1903. For about four years during the six- 
ties he had resided in Tipton, this state, and there his wife died in 1868. Im- 
mediately after his marriage, Anderson Prebster established his home in the 
log house in which he was born and there remained for thirteen years, when 
he moved to another house he had built on the same farm, where he re- 
mained until 1906, when he built at the edge of Brownsburg, where he still 
resides. In addition to this home, he owns ninety acres of farm lands, on 
which his children live, having disposed of part of the acreage of which he 
was once possessed. 

Cecil Forrest Prebster, son of Anderson Prebster and the immediate sub- 
ject of this sketch, attended the district schools of the township when a boy, 
later graduating from Brownsburg high school. This was in 1901, and 
since that time he has been engaged in farming the land on which he was 
born. On March 25, 1906, he was united in marriage with Bertha Thomp- 
son, daughter of Jesse and Mary (Mitchell) Thompson, and born in Pitts- 
boro, where she passed her girlhood with the exception of six months spent 
at North Salem. She was graduated from the Pittsboro high school in 1904. 
Jesse ThomJDson, father of Mrs. Prebster, was born in Madison county, Ken- 
tucky, where his mother died when he was still a small boy. His father re- 
married and Jesse remained with him until he grew to manhood, when he 
came to this state and county and here met and married Mary Mitchell. She 
was born in Starke county. North Carolina, a daughter of William and 
Rachel Mitchell, who came to this county when she was but three or four 
years old. They located near Raintown. After Jesse Thompson was mar- 
ried he made his home in Pittsboro, where he has followed various pursuits, 
being engineer of the mill at that place, also engaged in farming, etc. Mr. 
and Mrs. Cecil F. Prebster have a family of three children, Maurice Thomp- 
son, Marian Alice and Dorothy Aileen, and both are members of the Chris- 
tian church, with which also both parents are identified. The Prebster family 
is one of the oldest and best families of the county and in the immediate 
subject of this sketch the family has a member who is progressive, alive to 
the opportunities of the present and courteous and agreeable in manner. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 349 

CALVIN W. WARREN. 

Not all men are born to be leaders of their kind or to take a prominent 
part in any phase of life. It is the exceptional few who rise above theiir 
fellows and come to be known far or near as belonging to this class. Such 
men have the leading parts in the scheme of life and stand as the representa- 
tives of the great masses of honest, industrious and patriotic citizens who 
are the real stamina of national life. The foremost figures in our country 
today would lose their significance were there not back of them in almost 
countless numbers these sober, honest, quiet lives which are the bone and 
sinew of a prosperous country. To this latter class of dutiful and patriotic 
citizens the subject of this sketch belongs. 

Calvin W. Warren, residing two miles northwest of Brownsburg, was 
born October 12, 1842, at Knoxville, Tennessee, the son of William and 
Lydia (AlcCaslin) Warren, both of whom were born and reared in Guilford 
county, North Carolina. William Warren was a son of Henry Warren and 
Lydia AlcCaslin was the daughter of John McCaslin. The subject's parents 
were married in their native state before they left it and took up their resi- 
dence in Knox county, Tennessee, where they remained until 1850. By that 
time they had a family of ten children, eight of whom they brought with 
them to this state, making the trip in a wagon. Two of the older children 
had made the trip the year before on foot the entire distance. When first 
coming to this state, they located in Brown township, Hendricks county, but 
later moved near Bridgeport, in Marion county, and there the parents passed 
the remainder of their lives, he dying in Alarion county and she in Hen- 
dricks county. 

Calvin W. Warren grew to manhood on the home farm in this county, 
where he remained until in 1863, when, in response to the promptings of 
patriotism, he enlisted for service in the Seventeenth Indiana Battery, Light 
Artillery, where he remained for three years, during which time he saw much 
active service. He was stationed around the upper Potomac river, around 
Harper's Ferry and Baltimore and was in the battles of Winchester, Cedar 
Creek and Fisher's Hill. During the earlier part of the day's engagement 
at Cedar Creek, the subject and his companions were thankful to be able to 
effect a retreat from the enemy, but rallied their forces and in the afternoon 
the tables were turned and they routed the enemy to a finish. He was espe- 
cially fortunate during his service in that he came through so many close 
places without even a wound. He was mustered out of service on July 8, 



350 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

1865. and immediately returned to this county and has been engaged in farm 
work near Brownsburg ever since. 

Mr. Warren has never married and makes his home with his brother 
WiHiam H., west of Brownsburg. Pohtically, Mr. Warren has always beeij 
identified with the Repubhcan party, to which he has given his loyal support 
throughout the years. He is also a member of the Grand Army of the Re- 
public. Mr. Warren has lived a quiet, retired life and has ever so conducted 
himself as to win the trust and confidence of those with whom he came in 
contact. He is known as a man of excellent character, sober and industrious. 
During his youth he was denied many advantages in the way of education, 
but has become a great reader and is well informed on many subjects. 



GIDEON FRANKLIN HUFFORD. 

Among the various peoples of the earth that go to make up the cosmo- 
politan population of these United states of ours, none have contributed to 
our national life more excellent habits and traits than those who came orig- 
inally from Germany. The descendants of those people are distinguished 
for their thrift and honesty, and these two qualities in the inhabitants of 
any country will in the end alone make that country great. These two at- 
tributes, together with the liberal quantity of sound sense which is also a 
characteristic of the German people, will enrich any land and place it among 
the leading nations of the world. Descended from this excellent people is 
the immediate subject of this brief sketch. 

Gideon F. Hufford is a native of this county, born on May 13, 1836, 
in Washington township, the son of Joel and Eliza Jane (Miller) Hufford. 
Joel Hufford was born in 1808 at Carlisle, Nicholas county, Kentucky, and 
was descended from Christian Hufford, who emigrated to this country from 
Schwartzenau, Germany. Louisa Jane Miller was born on December 8, 181 3, 
in Kentucky, and was united in marriage with Joel Hufford August 31, 1830. 
About two years later they came to Indiana, locating at once in Hendricks 
county. They made the trip from their native state in a one-horse wagon, 
which contained all their worldly possessions. They had belonged to families 
of prominence in Kentucky and had always been accustomed to having their 
work done by slaves, but they readily adjusted themselves to conditions in 
the state of their adoption, entered a tract of eighty acres from the govern- 
ment, which they proceeded to clear and convert into a comfortable and 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 35 1 

happy home for themselves and family. They were excellent people and 
stood high in public estimation. 

On February 22, 1862, the subject was united in marriage with Mary 
Jane Stout, who was born on May 4, 1846, in the western part of Marion 
county, near Clermont, being a daughter of David and Joanna (Herd) Stout. 
David Stout and wife were both natives of the state of Ohio, were married 
there and soon went to Illinois. They remained there but a short time, how- 
ever, when, being dissatisfied, they came back to Indiana and settled in Ma- 
rion county, where they lived the rest of their lives. After marriage, Gideon 
F. Hufford purchased a farm about a mile and a half south of Brownsburg, 
this county, and in time became the owner of three hundred and forty acres 
of excellent land, part of it at Tilden and another tract on the Rockville 
road in Washington township. In 1895 he removed from the farm south of 
Brownsburg and took up his residence on his Tilden farm and there passed 
the remainder of his life, his death occurring January 28, 1903. He was a 
faithful member of the Baptist church and lived a life in strict conformity 
with the teachings of that faith. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Hufford were born nine children : George F., Delilah 
F., Carrie, Joel V., Theodore N., Ella, Julia, Edgar and John T. In August, 
1892, George mysteriously disappeared and has never since been heard from. 
Delilah died in infancy. Carrie is the wife of Theodore P. Garner and lives 
in Brown township. Joel married Alice Hughes and lives in Lincoln town- 
ship. Theodore died in infancy. Ella is the wife of Rolla Garner and re- 
sides in Lincoln township, and Julia is the wife of Edgar Beaman and lives in 
Middle township. Edgar married Effie M. Cummings on March 7, 1907, 
and lives at Tilden. They have two children, Marshall and Walter. Edgar 
lives on the homestead and manages it for his mother, who has resided there 
ever since the death of the subject. John T., the youngest son, married Tillie 
C. Nash in October, 1905, and they live one mile south of Brownsburg on the 
Plainfield road. 

A review of the life of the honored subject of this memoir is of neces- 
sity brief and general in its character. It would far transcend the limits of 
this article to enter fully into the interesting details of the career of the late 
Gideon F. Hufford, touching the struggles of his earlier life and the successes 
of his later years. He filled his place in the ranks of the sterling, energetic 
and public-spirited citizens of his day and generation, and the memories 
which attach to his name and character form no inconsiderable chapter in the 
history of this, his native county, where his entire life was passed. 



352 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

GEORGE MACOMBER. 

The two most strongly marked characteristics of both the East and the 
West are combined in the residents of the section of county of which this 
vokime treats. The enthusiastic enterprise which overleaps all obstacles 
and makes possible almost any undertaking in the comparatively new and 
vigorous Western states is here tempered by the stable and more careful 
policy that we have borrowed from our Eastern neighbors, and the com- 
bination is one of peculiar force and power. It has been the means of placing 
this section of the country on a par with the older East, at the same time 
producing a reliability and certainty in business affairs which is frequently 
lacking in the West. This happy combination of characteristics is possessed 
by the subject of this sketch. Born, reared and educated in Pennsylvania, 
he came to Indiana as a young man and Hendricks county may count 
itself fortunate in having him as one of its citizens. He came first to this 
county as a teacher in our schools, and his whole record since he has been 
here has been a most worthy one. From the school room he went into the 
mercantile business, and from the mercantile business he was called by his 
party to take the ofifice of county treasurer. George Macomber is a man 
whom Hendricks county delights to honor. 

George Macomber, now serving his second term as treasurer of Hen- 
dricks county, Jndiana, was born December 2, 1869, ^^"^ York county, 
Pennsylvania. George Macomber familiarized himself with the life of 
a farmer, during his boyhood and youth, by working at it on his father's 
farm. He is the son of W. Z. and Harriett (JNIessersmith) Macomber, and 
is of good American ancestry. His paternal great-grandfather. Doctor 
Zenas Macomber, was a Revolutionary hero of prominence, was one of 
General Washington's horse guards, and, daring all for freedom, was carried 
from the battle-field of Paoli with nineteen wounds. 

From the common schools George Macomber went to high school, where 
he graduated. Entering normal college, he pursued the prescribed course to 
graduation and then took a special course in the State College of Penn- 
sylvania. After teaching in the country schools, he came to Indiana about 
1897, as teacher in the Indiana Boys' School at Plainfield in Hendricks 
county, and remained with his duties in that institution until he resigned 
to assume the superintendency of a similar institution in Missouri. He 
returned to Hendricks county in 1906, and engaged in the mercantile busi- 
ness by opening a hardware store in F'lainfield. in the community where 




GEORGE MACOMBER 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 353 

he was well known and respected as a man who had made a success of what 
he tried to do. That business he continued to have personal charge of until 
he left it in a manager's hands in 19 12 to take charge of the office of treasurer 
of Hendricks county, to which he had been elected. Without opposition, 
his party nominated him in their county convention to succeed himself, be- 
cause he had shown high-grade ability, fidelity to duty as a servant of the 
people, and because of his manly and accommodating method of waiting upon 
those who have business with him as a county official. 

On November 2, 1899, Mr. Macomber married Mattie E. York, daughter 
of P. AI. and Elizabeth (Hornaday) York, who were early residents of 
Hendricks county. "Mr. and ]\Irs. Macomber hold their membership with 
the Methodist church at Plainfield, of which church he has been treasurer. 
He has had the advantages of fraternal organizations, and has been honored 
by his brothers in those orders with offices of trust and responsibility. He 
is past chancellor of the Knights of Pythias lodge at Plainfield; past master 
of the Masonic lodge; a member of the chapter and council of the York 
rite of the Masonic order at Danville; thirty-second-degree Mason of the 
Indiana Consistory, Scottish Rite, and the Mystic Shrine. 

Mr. Macomber's broad education and the careful method that is natural 
to him equips him in an unusual degree to do the public good service. The 
state board of accountants have highly commended the accuracy and evident 
methodic care shown by his official books. 

Mr. Macomber is popular as a gentleman of education and of pro- 
gressive make-up, and has the public respect and admiration for the ex- 
cellent manner in which he has demeaned himself as a public official, in which 
capacity he has been watchful, faithful to the county's best interests and 
attentive to the opportunity to bestow favor upon all who have had business 
with him. 



CHARLES A. CUMMINGS. 

Among the most successful citizens of this county who rank high in 
personal attainment, is the gentleman whose name heads this paragraph, a 
man whose expert services have been requisitioned in thirty-two states of the 
Union and who has conferred honor and dignity upon the locality where he 
resides in Lincoln township, Hendricks county, Indiana. Charles A. Cum- 
mings, the well-known builder of bridges, is also one of the leading farmers 
(23) 



354 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

of this county, owning an excellent farm of "one hundred and twenty acres in 
the township mentioned above, where he engages in general farming, assisted 
by one of his sons. Mr. Cummings has attained to his enviable position 
through unflagging perseverance and boundless enterprise and among other 
characteristics which have contributed largely to his success is that rare 
ability to use men so as to subserve his purpose and at the same time assist 
them. 

Charles A. Cummings was born on April 24, 1859, in Botetourt county, 
V^irginia, the son of William and Maria (Boose) Cummings, the former of 
whom was born in Bath county. Virginia, and, w^hile it is not definitely 
known, it is believed that his parents were both natives of Scotland. Maria 
Boose, mother of the subject, was born in Botetourt county, Virginia, the 
daughter of natives of Germany who had first settled in Pennsylvania and 
from there went into Virginia, where they lived out the remainder of their 
lives. William and Maria Cummings lived their lives in Virginia, where 
the}^ were engaged in farming. Their son Charles, the subject, remained with 
them until about, twenty-one years old and then, in 1880, went to Springfield, 
Ohio, where he had a brother. He engaged in agricultural work for a short 
time, and then his brother, Douglass B. L. Cummings, who was engaged in the 
steel bridge construction business, took young Charles A. into partnership 
and so began his career in that line of work in which he has proved so pro- 
ficient. They went to Peoria, Illinois, where they continued in their chosen 
business and after about two years w^ent to Indianapolis. This was in the 
spring of 1883. The year previous, while in Peoria, the subject had been 
united in marriage with Emma Sweat, a native of that city and the daughter 
of James B. and Elizabeth (Hines) Sweat. The father was a native of 
Maine and the mother had been born in Ohio. After their marriage they 
had gone to Peoria county, Illinois, and engaged in farming, where they 
lived the remainder of their lives. At the outbreak of the Civil War, Mr. 
Sweat enlisted for service, and while at the front took sick and died. His 
widow, mother of Mrs. Cummings. passed away at her home in Illinois in 
1908. After coming wnth their wives to Indianapolis, the Cummings brothers 
associated themselves with W. B. Bassett. C. L. Rose and W. W. Winslow, 
forming what was known as the Indianapolis Bridge Company. For about 
two years they made combination iron and wooden bridges and in about 
two years built a factory at the Bee Line tracks near East Michigan street. 
Here for about ten years they engaged in the manufacture of steel and com- 
bination bridges and then turned their attention to steel bridges exclusively, 
j\Ir. Cummings acting as superintendent of the plant most of the time. They 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 355 

also took contracts for bridges, which they made and erected. About the 
year 1893 their company was succeeded by the Indiana Bridge Company and 
then the subject and his old associates separated, each carrying on bridge 
contracting independently of the others. Mr. Cummings took the contract 
for the erection of the Kentucky avenue bridge over White river in the city 
of Indianapolis. This was in 1894, during the time Coxey and his "army" 
made their famous march. In accepting the contract for the erection of the 
bridge, Mr. Cummings had agreed to use local workmen as much as possible 
and the unemployed came to him in such numbers and were so wild for work 
that the police department was called upon to disperse the crowd. There 
were times when there would be fully two thousand men looking for em- 
ployment in the construction of the bridge and at that time laborers were 
paid only sixty cents a day. Now the cheapest labor he employs costs thirty 
cents per hour and some of his laborers make as much as four dollars per 
day. The year previous to the construction of the Kentucky avenue bridge, 
Mr. Cummings and his brother took the contract for the erection of the 
bridge over the Ohio at Wheeling, West Virginia, and resting on the island 
midstream. For awhile ^Ir. Cummings was associated with David Braden 
on several bridge contracts. It was David Braden after whom the subject's 
youngest son was named. 

It was in the year 1897 that Mr. Cummings came to this county and 
purchased land, setting himself up as a farmer. He first purchased one hun- 
dred and twenty acres in the southwestern part of Lincoln township and at 
one time owned as much as two hundred acres. However, he has disposed 
of different tracts until he now owns the same amount with which he first 
started. He still continues the. bridge business and in addition has his farm 
home, where the family have been reared. There are four children, Delniar, 
Effie, Wands and Braden. Delmar was born in 1883 and married Ethel 
Frisbie. He lives on a farm near his father, and has two children, Clayton 
and Gertrude. Delmar was associated with his father in the bridge business 
until about two years ago when he became superintendent of erection for the 
Central States Bridge Company of Indianapolis. Effie, who was born in 
1886, is the wife of Edgar Hufford and has two children, Marshall and 
Walter. Wands, born in 1888, married Blanche Kennedy and lives near his 
father. They are the parents of two children, Russel and Lloyd. He is en- 
gaged in farming. Braden, the youngest of the family, was born in 1894 
and remains at home as the assistant of his father, both in conducting the 
farm and in carrying on the work of bridge erection. 

Mr. Cummings' fraternal affiliation is with the Independent Order of 



356 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Odd Fellows, of which he has been a member since 1888, and both he and his 
wife are members of the White Lick Presbyterian church. The family is 
among the leading ones of the township, broad-minded, of advanced ideas 
and delightful to meet. Mr. Cummings' business has taken him all over the 
United States and he thoroughly enjoys travel, but the trip he considers most 
enjoyable of all was one it was his privilege to take in 191 2. He had been 
engaged in bridge work in Georgia and the Carolinas and Mrs. Cummings 
had been with him a great deal of the time. In the fall of that year they 
started to drive home in a buggy, leaving King's Mountain in North Caro- 
lina. They arrived at Danville, this county, seventeen and one-half days 
after, having crossed eight mountains and encountering some roads so rough 
it was necessary to hold the horse up. Roads were often only wide enough 
for one vehicle and passing would have been impossible. Mr. Cummings is 
a man of unusual strength of character and ability, one who impresses his 
individuality upon the locality honored by his residence. By a life of con- 
sistent action and thought, he has earned the high standing which he now 
enjoys and it is a pleasure to give him representation in a work of the scope 
of the one at hand. 



JOHN U. RICE. 



The sketch which now comes before the reader is a brief review of the 
career of John U. Rice, one of the older residents of the county and a man of 
sterling worth, who through long years of residence here has so conducted his 
affairs of life as to win the honor of all. His name has been inseparably con- 
nected with the general growth of Hendricks county, of which he is a native 
and W'here, in fact, he has spent the major portion of his life. While pri- 
marily attending to his own varied interests, his life has been largely devoted 
to his fellow men, having been untiring in his efforts to inspire a proper 
respect for law and order and ready at all times to uplift humanity along 
civic and social lines. 

John U. Rice was born on October 25, 1839, about a half mile north 
of Brownsburg, the son of Lewis and Sophia (Harris) Rice, both of whom 
were natives of the state of Kentucky, coming from either Scott or Bourbon 
county, the former having been born January 8, 1806, and the latter on June 
2-/. 181 1, being the daughter of William and Nancy (Barrett) Harris. When 
young, she was brought to this state by her parents, who came direct to Hen- 
dricks county and located near Brownsburg. Lewis Rice came to this state 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 357 

when twenty-one years old, locating north of Brownsburg, and there he met 
and married Sophia Harris. He was a farmer in this county the remain- 
der of his life and died here on March 25, 1865, at the age of lifty-two years. 
His wife lived several years after he died, passing away on April 11, 1880, at 
the age of sixty-four years. 

The subject was one of a family of nine children, all of whom grew to 
maturity. He passed his boyhood on the paternal homestead north of 
Brownsburg, attending the early subscription schools of the day, and in 
early life was apprenticed to the carpenter trade. He worked at this for some 
time and in wagon shops in and near Brownsburg, and on October 21, 1864, 
he was united in marriage with Mahala J. Montgomery, who was born in 
this county on November 2, 1840, being the daughter of Samuel and Mary 
(Fox) Montgomery, the former a native-born Hoosier and the latter com- 
ing here from Virginia. Immediately after marriage, Mr. Rice went to 
Illinois where he spent three years at his trade and farming part of the time. 
He then returned to this county and purchased a portion of the old home- 
stead and there resided until 1870. At that time he purchased a forty-acre 
tract in the southeastern part of Lincoln township and has lived there since. 
Mrs. Rice passed from this life on August 12, 1909. For years she had been 
a faithful member of the Christian church and was a woman highly esteemed 
by those who knew her. Mr. Rice has added to his original possessions from 
time to time, until he now owns one hundred acres of as excellent land as the 
county can boast. 

Mr. and Mrs. Rice were the parents of two children, Etta and Everett 
Harland. Etta is the wife of George Salmon and resides in Indianapolis. 
Mr. Salmon is a traveling salesman. They have one daughter. ]\Iary. who is 
the wife of Earl Hubert Duling, who was born on March 5, 1884, in Grant 
county, this state, the son of John and Lydia Duling. He now resides on the 
Rice homestead in Lincoln township and is the father of two sons, Byron 
Montgomery and Meredith Earl. Everett Harland Rice lives in Daviess 
county, this state, where he is engaged in farming. His wife was Laura Pike 
and they are the parents of three children, John Walker, ]Mamie Belle and 
Clara, all of whom are married. John Walter married May Stiles and they 
live in Los Angeles, California. Mamie Belle married Chester Cohee and 
lives at Elizabethtown, this state. She is the mother of a little son, Randall. 
Clara married Ernest Boyer and lives near Columbus, Indiana. 

Mr. Rice holds his religious membership with the Christian church in 
Brownsburg, of which his wife also was a member, and he is one of the most 
faithful members of that societv. Personallv, Mr. Rice is a man of clean 



358 HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 

character and has ever exerted a heahhful intiuence in the community, giv- 
ing his support to every movement which promises to advance the welfare 
of the locahtv in any way. Because of his genuine worth he enjoys the sin- 
cere respect of all who know him and is eminently entitled to representation 
in a work of the character of the one in hand. 



PATRICK M. LONG. 



It is generally considered by those in the habit of superficial thinking 
that the history of so-called great men only is worthy of preservation and 
that little merit exists among the masses to call forth the praises of the his- 
torian or the cheers and appreciation of mankind. A greater mistake was 
never made. No man is great in all things and very few are great in many 
things. JNIany by a lucky stroke achieve lasting fame who before that had 
no reputation beyond the limits of their neighborhoods. It is not a history 
of the lucky stroke which benefits humanity most, but the long study and 
effort which make the lucky stroke possible. It is the preliminary work, the 
method, that serves as a guide for the success of others. Among those in 
this county who have achieved success along steady lines of action is the 
subject of this sketch. 

Patrick M. Long, one of the foremost agriculturists of Brown township, 
Hendricks county, Indiana, is a native of the Emerald Isle, born in county 
Galway on March 26, 1856, being the son of Patrick and Bridget (Sheridan) 
Long, both of whom were natives of the same county. They emigrated to 
America when the subject of this sketch was but eight weeks old, there being 
one child older. The voyage was a long and tedious affair, it being seven- 
teen weeks from the time they left Europe until a landing in New^ York 
harbor was effected. The little family remained in New York until in 1864, 
when they went to Canada, where the father secured employment in the con- 
struction of a railroad. They remained there but one year and then came di- 
rect to Indiana, locating in Marion county, where Patrick, senior, secured 
work on farms by the month. For three or four years he followed this line 
of activity, when he came to Hendricks county and leased a farm in the east- 
ern part of Brown township, where the family resided about twenty-seven 
years. In the beginning he was to clear the land up and raise whatever crops 
he could. At the end of that time, he arranged to rent the farm and this 
contract was in force until i8go, the family residing thereon until in 1886, 



I 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 359 

when they moved to the farm where the subject now Hves in the western por- 
tion of Brown township. Patrick Long, senior, had purchased this farm in 
1879. It consisted of some eighty acres and this he farmed in connection 
with the rented land, which gave him in all about one hundred and eighty 
acres of excellent farming lands. He was a man deserving of the highest 
honor and esteem, for by his own unaided efforts he attained to a position 
of prominence and while primarily seeking the interests of himself and his 
immediate family, he so ordered his life as to win the esteem and respect of 
all who knew him. His death occurred on November 28, 1903, his wife hav- 
ing preceded him some years. She died March 28, 1881. 

Patrick M. Long was one of a family of seven children and lived in the 
old home until the time of his marriage, when he brought his bride to the 
paternal roof, where they have since made their home. Upon the death of his 
father, he came into possession of the homestead. Shortly before his fa- 
ther's death, the subject of this sketch purchased twenty acres adjoining the 
home place, which gives him a tract of one hundred acres. .This farm is con- 
sidered about the best drained land in the county and Mr. Long conducts his 
business along modern scientific methods. There is an air of prosperity and 
happiness all about the place and especially about the comfortable home, 
which is beautifully situated in a large grove of maples. 

On January 31, 1894, Patrick M. Long was united in marriage to Kate 
Tarpey, a daughter of James and Nancy (Dugan) Tarpey, both of whom 
were natives of county Galway, L-eland, and came to this country in 1862. 
They came direct to Hendricks county, Indiana, locating in the town of 
Plainfield, where they lived for some time. They then purchased land in 
Boone county, where they made their home until 1873, when they returned to 
Hendricks county, purchasing a farm about one mile south of where the 
subject of this sketch resides. It was on that farm that Mrs. Tarpey breathed 
her last on May 30, 1905. and in the following year Mr. Tarpey went to 
make his home with his daughter, wife of the subject of this sketch, and in 
their home his death occurred on November 20, 191 3. To Mr. and Mrs. 
Long have been born six children, four of whom survive, namely: Delia, 
Thresa. Patrick Francis and James, all of whom are still at home. 

Mr. Long is a stanch supporter of the Democratic party, taking active 
interest in the affairs of same. For one term he served as township trustee, 
and at the time he assumed the office there was a large indebtedness owed by 
the township. When his term had ended, he had paid off and turned over to 
his successor in cash enouoh to reduce the indebtedness about one-half with- 



360 HElJfDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

out having" increased the tax levy. This, Mr. Long feels, was a pretty good 
showing and he has just cause for that opinion. He also served as road su- 
pervisor for two years and was on the township advisory board for two 
years and in the discharge of the duties of these various offices he met with 
almost universal approbation. Mr. Long and his family are communicants of 
the Roman Catholic church, living strictly in accordance with the tenets of 
that faith. The family is highly respected and regarded as one of the leading 
families of the community, their hospitality being of that genuine order 
which welcomes friend and stranger alike. Mr. Long is a man of good busi- 
ness ability, strict integrity and fine personal address and because of his 
genuine worth and high character he has long enjoyed a splendid reputation 
in the community where he lives. He gives his support to all movements for 
the advancement of his fellow citizens and is numbered among the repre- 
sentative men of Brown township. 



JOHN P. MORAN. 

The people who constitute the bone and sinew of this country are not 
those who are unstable and unsettled, who fly from this occupation to that, 
who do not know how to vote until they are told, and who take no active and 
intelligent interest in affairs affecting their schools, churches and property. 
The backbone of this country is made up of those families who have made 
their homes; who are alive to the best interests of the community in which 
they reside; who are so honest that it is no trouble for their neighbors to 
know it, and who attend to their own business and are too busy to attend to 
that of others; who work on steadily from day to day, taking the sunshine 
with the storm, and who rear a fine family to a comfortable home and an 
honest life. Such people are always welcome in any country and in any 
community. They are wealth producers and this country is blessed with 
many of them, among whom is the gentleman whose name appears at the 
head of this sketch. 

John P. Moran, one of the county commissioners of Hendricks county, 
Indiana, was born June 16, 1861, in Marion county, Indiana, the son of Peter 
and Bridget (Mullin) Moran, both natives of Ireland. Peter Moran was 
born in county Waterford, Ireland, and his wife in Galway. From their 
native land they went to England before their marriage and in that country 
they were married. After the birth of two children, they came to America 




JOHN P. MORAN 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 361 

and settled in Marion county, Indiana, two miles north of Clermont. Here 
Peter Moran was living at the time of the Civil War, and, although he had 
been in the country only a short time, yet he was willing to sacrifice his life 
for his adopted country. Accordingly he enlisted on August i8, 1862, in 
Company F, Seventieth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and served 
until he was captured and placed in Libby prison. He was one of the few 
men who made that memorable escape through the tunnel which was dug by 
the prisoners. However, he was not as fortunate as some of them, for he 
was recaptured and again thrown into the prison, where he shortly after- 
wards died. Peter Moran and his wife were the parents of four children, 
Mary and Ellen, who were born in England, and Hannah and John, who were 
born in this country. 

John P. Moran was only about one year old when his father enlisted for 
service in the Union army and consequently never remembered seeing him. 
When he was four years of age his mother moved to Hendricks county, this 
state, and here he received his education. He was a remarkably bright youth 
and quickly forged his way to the front. While still a young man, he was 
given employment at the Boys' School at Plainfield as night watchman. He 
was promoted several times, was an officer four years and for twelve years 
was assistant superintendent of that school under T. J. Charlton. At the 
expiration of that time he went to Morganza, Pennsylvania, where he served 
under J. A. Quay for two years and eight months as first officer of the Boys' 
Reform School at that place. He then came back to Hendricks county, this 
state, and settled on a farm in Center township, where he is still living. He 
owns a fine farm of three hundred and twenty acres, which is thoroughly 
modern in every respect. 

Mr. Moran was married December 2, 1896, to Eliza Nevells, the 
daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth (Tinder) Nevells, and to this marriage 
has been born one son, John, who is still residing with his parents. 

Mr. Moran has been a life-long Democrat and has always taken an 
active part in politics. He is a man of education and has been frequently 
consulted by the leaders of his party in the county, his advice being usually 
followed. In 1912 his party placed him in nomination for the office of 
county commissioner and he was elected by a large majority, bringing to 
bear in this important office those excellent qualities which made him a suc- 
cess in his school work. 

Mr. Moran and his son are earnest and devoted adherents of the 
Catholic church and give to it their zealous support at all times. ]\Irs. Moran 



362 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

is a member of the Christian church. Earnest purpose and private energy, 
combined with excellent judgment and every-day common sense, have made 
Mr. Moran a man of influence in his township and county. Starting in life 
with practically nothing but his keen mind and willing hands, he has won a 
place where he is universally regarded as one of the rejjresentative men of 
his county. He has been an active participant in every measure which he 
felt would benefit his community and has contributed in no small way to tlie 
growth of his township and county and to the advancement of its best 
interests. 



JOSEPH H. AIRHART. 



One of the most enterprising of our younger generation of farmers in 
Johnson county, who has believed from the outset of his career that the 
"wisdom of yesterday is sometimes the folly of today," and that while the 
methods of our grandfathers in tilling the soil were all right in their day, 
yet in the twentieth century we are compelled to adopt new methods and 
farm along different lines, in view of the fact that conditions of climate, soil, 
grains, etc., have changed since the days of the pioneers. He has been a close 
observer of modern methods and is a student at all times of whatever per- 
tains to his chosen life work and he has, therefore, met with encouraging 
success all along the line. Judging from his past record, he will undoubtedly 
achieve much in the future years and take his place among the leading agri- 
culturists of a community noted for its fine farms and adroit husbandmen. 

Joseph H. Airhart, proprietor of a fine farm of one hundred and twenty 
acres, considered one of the best improved farms in the county, located in 
the northwestern portion of Brown township, Hendricks county, Indiana, 
was born in Boone county, this state, on September 6, 1876. He is a son 
of Jacob and Mary E. (Gill) Airhart. Jacob was one of a family of six 
children and was brought by his parents from their native state of Virginia 
while he w^as still quite young. His father, Peter Airhart, was a son of a 
native of Holland who had emigrated to America in the early days and set- 
tled in Virginia. Upon coming to Indiana, Peter Airhart settled in Boone 
county, where he entered land from the government and lived thereon the 
rest of his life, and on that same land the subject of this sketch first saw the 
light of day. Mary E. Gill, mother of the subject, was one of a family of 
seven children born to Washington and Fanny (Gibson) Gill, and was brought 
to the state of Indiana from their old home in Kentucky while still cjuite a 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. S^S 

small child. Her father entered land from the government in Boone county, 
near Advance, and there passed the remainder of his life. Jacob Airhart 
was twice married, his first wife being a Miss Bowman, to whom he was 
married in the early fifties. She lived for about ten years thereafter, leav- 
ing two children at the time of her death. He continued to live on the old 
home place after his second marriage, some time in the sixties, to Mary E. 
Gill, and there his death occurred in 1887. By his second wife he had a 
family of five children, of which the subject of this sketch is one. 

Joseph H. Airhart was but eleven years old at the time of his father's 
death and three vears later his mother also died. From that time on until 
he was twenty-one years of age, he was practically homeless, making his 
home with whomsoever he could secure work. In 1897 he was united m 
marriage with Mary E. LaFollette, a cousin of Senator LaFollette of Wis- 
consin. She was a daughter of Alilton and Elizabeth J. (Grider) LaFol- 
lette, originally from Putnam county, this state. Her father died when she 
was four vears old and the mother continued to keep up the home near 
Shannondale, where the present Mrs. Airhart lived until the time of her 
marriage to the subject. In 1898 Mr. Airhart purchased a tract of eighty 
acres near Lebanon, in Boone county, on which he resided for three years. 
He then came to Hendricks county and purchased his present farm of one 
hundred and twenty acres in Brown township, which is considered one of the 
best-cared-for farms in the county, fully attesting what up-to-date scientific 
methods in agriculture can accomplish when coupled with energy and untir- 
ing effort. The vocation of the farmer is coming more and more to be re- 
ga'^rded as the ideal life, that in which a man has opportunity to display 
abilitv of the highest order and in which vocation he is more independent 
than in anv other. Time was when, after a season of arduous labor, the 
farmer was forced to take for his produce whatever he could get; now he 
makes prices himself and so rules the markets of the world. 

Mr. Airhart's political preferences are with the Democratic party, of 
which he has been a stanch supporter for many years. Fraternally, he is 
a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Lodge No. 839. and 
the religious membership of himself and wife is with the Christian church, 
of which he is an earnest member. ^Ir. and Mrs. Airhart have one child, 
Fern Evadna, who remains at home. They are considered among the lead- 
ing citizens of their community, their home extending genuine hospitality to 
friend and stranger alike. Personally, Mr. Airhart is friendly, a good mixer, 
and wins and retains friends without effort, for he is at all times a gentleman, 



364 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

obliging, unassuming and honest to the letter in his dealings with his fellow 
men. His life has been one of unceasing industry and perseverance and the 
notably systematic and honorable methods he has followed have won for him 
the unbounded confidence and regard of all who hava formed his acquaintance. 



JOHN A. ADAMS. 



Among the leading citizens of Brownsburg, Hendricks county, Indiana, 
none stand in better repute than John A. Adams, the well-known mill and 
elevator man, who, by reason of his business qualifications, has done much 
to enhance the commercial life of the town. Also during the years of his 
residence there, he has taken an active part in the administration of civic 
affairs and has ever done all within his power to promote the moral, material 
and educational life of the community. 

John A. Adams was born on December 23, 1853, in Washington town- 
ship, this county, the son of John C. and Sarah E. (Park) Adams, both of 
whom were born in Kentucky. John C. came from Estill county and prob- 
ably Sarah E. Park did also. John C. was the son of James and Eleanor 
Adams, who came from Kentucky and located in this county near Danville, 
where they engaged in farming. John C. grew up in this county and all his 
life was engaged in farm work, owning land in Washington township, 
where he lived up to the last two years of his life. These were passed in 
Lincoln township, where his death dccurred in 1865. Sarah E. Park, his 
wife, was a daughter of John and Alalinda (Robinson) Park, who came from 
Kentucky and located in Boone county, in the early forties. She survived her 
husband a number of years, her death occurring in 1893. 

John A. Adams passed his boyhood days on the home farm, receiving 
his elementary education in the district schools of that locality, later at- 
tending the Central Normal College, at Danville. He assisted on the home 
farm and in 1886 became identified with the milling business at Browns- 
burg. At that time a stock company was organized, of which he was a 
member, and later he and Mr. Lingerman purchased the interests of the other 
members of the company and have since operated the mill in partnership. 
In 1 90 1 they also became owners of the elevator and in 1910 remodeled the 
mill, adding corn shellers and a cleaning apparatus. Their mill has a capac- 
ity of fifty barrels daily and they make an excellent grade of fiour, under the 
trade name of "Best Imperial."* In addition to their milling and grain busi- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 365 

ness, they also deal in coal and are numbered among the progressive business 
men of the town and county. 

In politics, Mr. Adams is a Republican and has shown a deep interest 
in the welfare of the town. He has been secretary and treasurer of the 
town, a member of the town board and also a member of the school board, 
and in meeting the obligations thus devolving upon him has ever thrown his 
influence on the side of the greatest good to the greatest number. 

In 1885 Mr. Adams was united in marriage with Jennie S. Wells, who 
was born in ^diddle township, this county, a daughter of Simon and Nancy 
S. ( Smith ) Wells. The W^ells family came to this county at an early day, 
being numbered among its pioneers. Their original home was North Caro- 
lina. The Smith family came to this county from Kentucky. ]\Ir. and Mrs. 
Adams have one son living, Harold \Y., who is attending Indiana University, 
at Bloomington, and is a promising young man. Mr. Adams' fraternal 
affiliations ^re with the time honored body of Free and Accepted Masons 
and the Knights of Pythias and both he and his wife are consistent members 
of the Christian church. ]\Ir. Adams is an honest, unassuming man of 
affairs, who earnestly desires to adec[uately fill his place in life and be of 
lasting assistance to those whose lives touch his. 



CHARLES TANSEL. 

In preparing a review of a man's life, it is not the biographer's part to 
give voice to a man's modest opinion of himself and what he has done, but 
rather it is his part to leave upon record the verdict establishing his char- 
acter, which is the consensus of opinion among his friends and neighbors. 
"Actions speak louder than words" is a true saying, and while a man might 
give voice to the most lofty principles, his life must be in accordance with 
them else the words carry no weight. The subject of this sketch is held in 
high regard by those with whom he comes in contact and it is, therefore, ap- 
parent that throughout the years his manner of living has been such as to 
win this high tribute. 

Charles Tansel was born on September i6, i860, in the western part of 
Marion county, near the town of Clermont, being the son of Peyton and 
Mary (Myers) Tansel. Peyton Tansel was born in Kentucky in 1821 and 
at the age of eight years was brought to Indiana by his parents, who settled 
along Fall creek, north of Indianapolis. After staying there a short time, 



366 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

they came to the western part of Marion county and there made their per- 
manent home. Here it was that Peyton passed his boyhood days, grew to 
manhood and married. He was thrice married, his first wife being a Miss 
Patterson, who died in a few years, leaving a son and daughter. His second 
wife was Mary Myers, the mother of the immediate subject of this sketch, 
who died when the subject was a babe of two years. Later Peyton Tansel 
married Mary j\Ioon and to their union were born three children, two of 
whom died in infancy and one son, Tinsley, survives. Peyton Tansel's en- 
tire life was spent in the western part of Marion county and there his death 
occurred in 1903. his widow surviving until 1906, having continued to live 
through her widowhood on the homestead. 

Charles Tansel remained under the paternal roof, assisting his father in 
the work al:out the homestead, until the time of his marriage, in March, 
1899, to Emma Tucker, who was born in Shelby county, this state, a daugh- 
ter of Cornelius Frazier and Phoebe (Brant) Tucker, both natives of Shelby 
county. Cornelius Frazier Tucker was a son of James Tucker, a pioneer citi- 
zen of that county who had acquired considerable land there and for many 
years before his death was regarded as one of the leading citizens of the 
community. Phoebe Brant, mother of Mrs. Tansel, was a daughter of Will- 
iam and Elizabeth (Chance) Brant, and died when her daughter Emma was 
six years old. Frazier Tucker then married Martha Blake and in 1884 moved 
a short distance east of Clermont, where they purchased a farm and lived 
there until 1905, when they retired from the active duties of farm life and 
went to Clermont to end their days in quietness. He lived but two months 
after leaving the farm and his Avidow passed away on Christmas day, 1912, 
in the city of Indianapolis. Emma Tucker remained with her father until 
the time of her marriage to the subject, and immediately afterwards they 
established their home on the farm where they now reside in Lincoln town- 
ship, this county. This farm comprises eighty acres and on it Mr. Tansel 
carries on general farming and kindred interests. To Mr. and Mrs. Tansel 
has been born one son, Herbert, whose birth occurred in 1900. Mrs. Tansel 
was one of a family of three children ; a baby brother died when two years 
old and the third member is Mary, wife of Oliver P. Morgan, w^ho lives in 
Clermont. 

Both Mr. and Mrs. Tansel are devout members of the Methodist Epis- 
copal church and give liberallv of their time and means to further the cause 
of that society. They are both quiet and unassuming in manner and cordial 
in their relations with friends and neio-hbors. ]\Ir. Tansel stands as an ex- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 367 

ample of what may be accomplished \y\' any man who is not afraid to work 
and will put brains into whatever he does. By honest effort and thrift he has 
amassed a competence and his kindliness and good nature have endeared him 
to the large number of people with whom he comes in contact. 



LUCIAX G. FUNKHOUSER. 

Among the earnest men whose enterprise and depth of character have 
gained a prominent place in the communitj' and the respect and confidence 
of his fellow citizens is the honored subject of this sketch. A leading farmer 
and stock raiser of the township in which he resides and a man of decided 
views and laudable ambitions, his influence has ever been exerted for the 
advancement of his kind and in the vocation to which his energies are de- 
voted he ranks among the representative agriculturists of the county. 

Lucian G. Funkhouser. who is successfully operating his farm of eighty 
acres in Brown township, Hendricks county, devoting especial attention to his 
excellent strain of Poland China hogs, is a native of this county, having been 
born June 22, 1867, not far from his present place of residence. He is the 
son of Joseph and Nancy E. (King) Funkhouser, the former of whom was 
a native of Virginia, coming to Indiana in his boyhood with his parents, 
who settled in Hendricks count5^ near the center of Brown township, where 
they purchased a farm of eighty acres. Joseph F., who was the son of Mar- 
tin F., lived at home until the time of his marriage, when he made his home 
for a time on rented ground, later purchasing a farm, a portion of which 
is included in the farm now owned by the immediate subject of this sketch. 
They were the parents of seven children, one of whom died in infancy. 

Lucian G. Funkhouser remained under the parental roof until the time 
of his marriage, having received his education in the schools of Hendricks 
county. In 1890 he was united in marriage with Myra E. Crane, daughter 
of James and Elizabeth (Cox) Crane, of Boone county, and at that time 
built the house which has since been their home. James Crane, father of 
Mrs. Funkhouser, was a native of the Hoosier state and the son of Stephen 
and Mary (Ross) Crane. Stephen Crane was a native of Ohio and the son 
of John and Letitia Crane. ]\Iary Ross Crane Avas a daughter of John Ross 
and was of Scotch ancestry. Elizabeth Cox Crane, mother of jNIrs. Funk- 
houser, was born in the state of Kentucky and was the daughter of John and 
Rebecca (Howard) Cox, both native to Kentucky. Rebecca Howard was a 



368 HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 

daughter' of Ellen (Ford) Howard, of Baltimore, Maryland. James Crane 
served a short time in the War of the Rebellion. He was a member of Com- 
pany A, Seventh Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and was in service three 
months. After returning home, he went to Colorado where he engaged in 
labors in the gold fields. He and his wife were the parents of four chil- 
dren. Myra E. remaining at home until the time of her marriage. To Mr. 
and Mrs. Funkhouser have been born seven children, five of whom are liv- 
ing. Sallie, one of the daughters, is the wife of Carl Herring, the son of 
Philip and America (Walker) Herring, of Brown township, where the 
young people reside just south of Mr. Funkhouser' s home. There still re- 
main under the parental roof Hazel, Mary, Loyal and Harry. 

Air. and Mrs. Funkhouser are both members of the Christian church 
and give liberally of their time and means toward its support. Their home 
is the center of an interesting social life and both children and parents have 
a wide circle of friends by whom they are much admired. Mr. Funkhouser 
is a most companionable gentleman, honorable and reliable in all his deal- 
ings, and he ranks among the enterprising and public-spirited citizens of the 
community in which he resides, manifesting an active interest in whatever 
pertains to the progress of his county and co-operates with others in for- 
warding all measures whereby his fellowmen may be benefited. Because of 
his high principles and his success in life, he is held in high favor by his fel- 
low citizens. 



ALFRED S. LINEINGER. 

An enumeration of the representative citizens of Hendricks county 
would be incomplete without specific mention of the well known and popular 
gentleman whose name introduces tb.is sketch. A member of one of the old 
and highly esteemed families of this locality and for many years a public- 
spirited man of affairs, he has stamped the impress of his individuality upon 
the community and added luster to the honorable name which he bears, hav- 
ing always been actuated by a spirit of fairness in his dealings with the world 
in general and leaving no stone unturned whereby he might benefit his own 
condition as well as that of his friends and the favored section of the great 
commonwealth in which he has been content to spend his life. Straightfor- 
ward and unassuming, genial and obliging, Mr. Lineinger enjoys the good 
will and respect of a wide circle of friends throughout this part of the state. 

Alfred S. Lineinger, ex-county commissioner, is a native of this county, 




ALFRED S. LINEINGER 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



./)9 



born on July i, 1853, the son of Aaron and Margaret (Duzan) Lineinger, 
the former of whom was a native of Ross county, Ohio, born July 28, 1822, 
and the eighth child in a family of twelve children. Margaret Duzan was a 
native of Kentucky, having been brought to this state when quite young. 
Her parents first settled in Monroe county, coming to Hendricks in 1825. 
She was born March 17, 1814, in Fleming county, Kentucky, and departed 
this hfe March 31, 1895. 

Aaron Lineinger left his boyhood home in Ohio at the age of twenty- 
one years and, in company with Jacob M. Duzan, went to Iowa. There they 
remained but one year, engaging in agricultural work, w^hen they came east- 
ward to Indiana and settled in this county. In Center township they pur- 
chased eighty acres of land in equal partnership, for which they paid four 
hundred dollars. Two years later Aaron bought out Duzan's interest for 
eight hundred dollars. Duzan left for Middle township, where he purchased 
eighty acres of land for the price he had received from Aaron Lineinger for 
his forty acres. Aaron Lineinger remained on this farm for the remainder 
of his life, carrying on general farming with particular attention paid to 
grain and stock. He deeded this land to the subject about 1902 and there 
his death occurred on December 22, 1912. He had been a helpless invalid 
the latter part of his life, and at his death was survived by his brother John, 
who departed this life January 14, 1914, in his ninetieth year. On July 21, 
1848, Aaron Lineinger was united in marriage with Margaret Duzan and to 
this union were born two children, Samantha, who became Mrs. Ensminger, 
and the immediate subject of this sketch. Aaron Lineinger was a man of 
studious habits and excellent business qualifications, an affectionate husband 
and father and a kind and helpful neighbor. He enjoyed the confidence and 
esteem of a large circle of friends and acquaintances, many of whom were 
warmly endeared to him by various acts of kindness. He w^as a stanch 
Republican, but was never the incumbent of any public office. His fraternal 
affiliation was with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of which he had 
been a member since 1864. While not a member of any church, he had been 
reared in the faith of the Methodist Episcopal church and gave much assist- 
ance to that society in various ways. His was a well-rounded, well-balanced 
life. While seeking primarily the welfare of himself and those nearest to 
him, he never forgot the claims of his less fortunate brethren and through- 
out his life here he took an active part in any movement having as its ulti; 
mate object the betterment of the moral, educational or material life of the 
community. 
(24) 



370 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Alfred S. Lineinger spent his boyhood days in Center township and 
grew to manhood on the farm where he now makes his home. His early 
education was obtained in the township schools, later attending the academy 
at Danville. On March 8, 1877. Mr. Lineinger was united in marriage with 
Sarah A. Hollingsworth, daughter of Samuel V. and Lydia (Mullen) Holl- 
ingsworth, of Washington township, this county. To their union have been 
born three children, two of whom died in infancy, the surviving member 
being their son Floyd, who is a farmer, living on a part of the subject's home- 
stead. Floyd married Bernice Euseba Wiley, a native of this county, and 
their union is without issue. Mr. Lineinger originally owned three hundred 
and twent}' acres of excellent land, located on the Danville electric line, but 
about one year ago sold one hundred acres of this at a price of one hundred 
and thirty dollars per acre. This was at considerable profit, as he paid 
thirty-five dollars per acre for the same land twelve years earlier. 

Mr. Lineinger is a stanch Republican, very active in local politics. 
He gave nine years' service on the board of county commissioners. He was 
elected in the fall of 1900, taking his seat in January of 1902 and served 
until January, 1911, from district number two. During his years of service 
on the board the subject of the erection of concrete bridges came before that 
body, and several excellent bridges were constructed during the subject's 
term of office. Mr. Lineinger's fraternal affiliations are with the Indepen- 
dent Order of Odd Fellows, the Knights of Pythias, the Free and Accepted 
Masons, and the Tribe of Ben-Hur, being associated with these bodies 
through the local lodges at Danville. He has filled the various chairs in the 
first two societies mentioned and has also been a member of the grand lodges 
of those same societies. He is also chief of the Tribe of Ben-Hur in his local 
lodge. Both Mr. and Mrs. Lineinger are members of Bartlett chapel 
(Methodist Episcopal), Mr. Lineinger serving that society as trustee for 
many years. Both he and his wife are earnestly interested in the welfare 
of that society and do much toward the support of same. 

Like his father, Mr. Lineinger is a man of excellent business ability 
and sterling qualities of heart and mind. He stands high in public estima- 
tion by reason of his many years of unquestioned uprightness of l'"fe and the 
helping hand he is ever ready to extend to those in need. He is a man of 
genial, though quiet, temperament; active and progressive in all his ideas. 
He is one of the leading men of the county in his chosen vocation and both 
his public and private life have ever been above reproach. Needless to say, 
a man of so many engaging qualities is not only highly respected, but also 
is warmly esteemed by a large circle of friends and acquaintances. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 37I 

JAMES W. PHILLIPS. 

All callings, whether humble or exalted, may be productive of some 
measure of success if enterprise and industry, coupled with a well directed 
purpose, form the motive force of the person directing the same, and in no 
case is this fact more apparent than in agricultural pursuits. It is a well 
authenticated fact that success comes as the result of legitimate and well- 
applied energy, unflagging determination and perseverance as well as the 
above enumerated qualities. When a course of action is once decided upon, 
these attributes are essential. Success is never known to smile upon the 
idler or dreamer and she never courts the loafer, only those who have dili- 
gently sought her favor being crowned with her blessings. In tracing the 
history of the prosperous and influential agriculturist whose name forms the 
caption of this biographical review, we find that the above-named elements 
have entered largely into his make-up and therefore we are not surprised at 
the large and ever-growing success which he has attained. 

James W. Phillips was born in Jefferson county, Indiana, on April 7, 
1837, the son of Thomas and Susan (Wilson) Phillips, both of whom were 
natives of North Carolina. When young, they were brought to Kentucky 
with their parents, and later came to Indiana with their families, their mar- 
riage not taking place until after they had become residents of the Hoosier 
state. Thomas Phillips was killed by a tree falling on him while felling 
timber, at the time the subject of this sketch was fifteen years old. Being 
the oldest of the family, many of its burdens and responsibilities then fell 
upon his young shoulders and he remained at home for a number of years, 
assisting the mother in the care and support of the family of younger brothers 
and sisters. In 1861 Mr. Phillips was united in marriage with Lydia Gray, 
whose death occurred in 1879. She was the mother of two children, namely: 
Charles H., who died at the age of twenty-nine years, never having been 
married, and Clarence B., who took as his wife Leoda Wilson. By this 
wife he has two children, Wilma, who makes her home with her father, and 
Harold, who has always been under the care of his maternal grandmother, 
his mother having passed away when he was only four days old. Clarence B. 
chose as his second wife Cornelia Pearcy, by whom he has one child, Otis, 
residing with his parents. 

In 1881 Mr. Phillips was united in marriage with Melvina Gray, a sister 
of his first wife, by whom he has six children. Lydia and Melvina Gray 
were the daughters of Hiram and Roxy (Young) Gray, the former from 



37-^ HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Clermont county. Ohio, and the latter of whom was a native of New York. 
They were married in 1834 and lived for several years in Ohio. Wishing 
to better their fortunes, they removed to the state of Kentucky, where they 
remained for only a year and, being dissatisfied, returned to their former 
home in Ohio. They later came to Indiana and settled in Jennings county, 
where Melvina was born. When she was ten years old, the family moved to 
Missouri, making the trip overland in covered wagons. They were there 
eight years, when the death of the mother occurred, and the father brought 
his family ])ack into Indiana and settled in Hendricks county about two and 
one-half miles northeast of Brownsburg. Here he purchased a farm, where 
he lived for a number of years, later disposing of it and purchasing property 
in Brownsburg, where he lived until his death. Of Mr. Phillips' family by 
his second wife, the eldest is Iva Jane, wife of Harry Bell, a resident of 
Brownsburg. They have a family of three children, Mabel, Horace and 
Grant. Mr. Phillips has three children remaining at home, Hiram, Roy and 
Delta. Susan, another daughter, married James Smith and they are engaged 
in agricultural work in Boone county. They have a family of four children, 
Lloyd, Esther, Kellar and Noble. Ruth, another daughter, is the wife of 
Riley Smith and they live .on his father's farm, one mile west of the Phil- 
lips home. 

James \\\ Phillips first came to Hendricks county in 1865 and for two 
years lived on rented farms, after which time he purchased the home where he 
has since resided. Mr. Phillips is a graduate of a military school, being 
second lieutenant of his company at the time of his graduation. During the 
dark days of the sixties, while not at the front, he was busy in the work 
nearer home. He did service in the Jefferson county militia, assisting in the 
pursuit of Morgan and his raiders. He also helped guard Confederate pris- 
oners which were brought to Indianapolis. He had three brothers at the 
front, one of whom died while in service, having contracted a serious ill- 
ness while on duty. He also had three brothers-in-law^ in the war, one of 
whom starved to death in Andersonville prison. Politically, Mr. Phillips is 
a strong supporter of the Republican party and, while not a seeker after of- 
fice for himself, his influence at the polls is a thing reckoned with by those 
who do seek such honors. Mrs. Phillips is a member of the Methodist Epis- 
copal church and, while Mr. Phillips does not hold church membership any- 
where, his sympathies would seem to be with the society chosen by his wife, 
for he gave the site on which the Corinth Methodist church is erected and 
has in other ways assisted financially in its support, while Mrs. Phillips gives 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 373 

much of her time to further the interests of the society. Mr. Phillips has 
ever shown himself worthy of the high esteem in w^hich he is held. His life 
has been filled with activity and usefulness, w^hile his untiring energy and 
ability have secured for him a conspicuous and honorable place among the 
citizens of his community. His strict integrity and unpretending bearing 
have elevated him in the confidence of his fellow citizens, and his influence 
has always been exerted in the interests of those things which have helped 
to elevate his fellow men socially, morally and educationally. Because of 
his successful career and his high personal character, he is eminently en- 
titled to representation among the leading men of his county. 



WILLIAM I. NASH. 



Success is only achie\ed by the exercise of certain distinguishing qualities 
and it cannot be retained without eft'ort. Those 1)y whom great epoch 
changes have been made in the political and industrial world began early in 
life to prepare themselves for their peculiar duties and responsibilities and it 
was only by the most persevering and continuous endeavor that they suc- 
ceeded in rising superior to the obstacles in their way and reaching the goal 
of their ambition. Such lives are an inspiration to others who are less 
courageous and more prone to give up the fight before their ideal is reached 
or definite success in any chosen field has been attained. In the life history 
of the honorable gentleman whose name forms the caption of this article we 
find evidence of a characteristic that always makes for achievement — per- 
sistency, coupled with fortitude and lofty traits, and as a result of such a life 
Mr. Nash stands today one of the representative citizens of Hendricks county. 

William J. Nash was born in this county on June 9. 1849, the son of 
Isaac C. and Cilicia (Wilson) Nash, who at that time resided about three- 
quarters of a mile northeast of Brownsburg. Isaac C. Nash was born in 
Ohio on March 27, 181 7, and when small was brought to Indiana iDy his 
parents, Thomas J. Nash and wife. Cilicia Wilson, mother of the immediate 
subject of this sketch, was a native of A^irginia, born on March i, 181 7, and 
was also brought to this state by her parents while still a small child. Both 
the Nash and Wilson families entered tracts of government land some three 
miles southwest of where the town of Brownsburg now is, in what was then 
almost a wilderness. It was there that Isaac C. and Cilicia grew to years of 
maturity, meeting the pleasures and privations of pioneers, and eagerly taking 



374 HENDRICKS COUNTY^ INDIANA. 

advantage of the meagre opportunities for education afforded them by the 
early subscription schools, while doing their share of the work about their 
respective homes. Qn January 28, 1841, they were united in marriage and 
for about a year lived on his father's farm. They then secured forty acres 
of government land about one mile northeast of Brownsburg. all located in 
virgin forest. It took several years of strenuous labor to convert this tract 
into well cultivated fields. Their first home on that land was a log cabin with 
a nice log barn near by, and in that cabin home the subject of this sketch first 
saw the light of day. Later on a commodious frame house was built, and 
there Isaac C. Nash passed his remaining years, his death occurring Septem- 
ber 25, 1897. His wife had preceded him a number of years, having passed 
away on December 24, i860. They were the parents of nine children, those 
beside the subject being John A., Mary E., Clarinda. William J., Edward F., 
Alvertus, George A. and Cilicia. 

William J. Nash remained at home with his father until the time of 
his marriage, in the meantime attending the district schools of his neighbor- 
hood and receiving from his father careful instruction in the secrets of hus- 
bandry. On November 2, 1870, he was united in marriage with Elizabeth 
McCray, who was born November 6, 1853. ^he daughter of Richard and 
Sarah (Avery) McCray, the latter dying when Elizabeth was a babe of but 
six months. She was the only child of that union and after her mother's 
death she was cared for by her mother's people. Richard L. McCray and 
Sarah Avery both were natives of Indiana, having been reared in Marion 
county, the former the son of Samuel and Elizabeth (Lucas) McCray, both 
of whom were born in the state of Ohio. Richard L. was born July 7, 1828, 
near Connersville, this state. The parents of Sarah Avery were Solomon 
and Fanny (Hawkins) Avery. Some two years after the death of his first 
wife, Sarah Avery, Richard L. McCray rernarried, going directly to Iowa, 
where he located near Prairie City. In the fall of 1862 he enlisted as second 
lieutenant in Company G, Tvx^enty-third Regiment Iowa Infantry, and at the 
battle of Black's River Bridge, near Vicksburg, Mississippi, on the 17th of 
May, 1863, he was killed by sharpshooters while on the skirmish line. Fie 
was captain of his company at the time of his death. Shortly after going 
into service he was raised to first lieutenant, and not long after that was com- 
missioned captain. Some time after his death, his widow and children re- 
turned to Indiana. He was a man of unusual and lovable qualities of heart 
and mind, looking at life in a sweet and serious way, as evidenced by this 
sketch inscribed on the fly-leaf of his much beloved copy of Holy Writ : 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 375 

"Richard L. McCra}^, son of Samuel and Elizabeth McCray, born in Fayette 
county, Indiana, near Connersville, July 7, 1828. At an early period in life 
he evidenced a love of music and spent a great portion of his childhood days 
singing the familiar airs of those days. When in his sixth year, his father 
moved to Alarion county near the capitol of Indiana. At the age of eighteen 
he left home to learn the joiners and framers' trade, but in this he made but 
little proficiency and returned at the age of twenty-one to the home of his 
childhood. In his twenty-second year he obtained this book of Adam Sham- 
baugh. At the age of twenty-five he joined the Christian church at North 
Liberty, in accordance with the teachings of this Holy Book." He was a 
singing-school teacher while young, and also taught school. He was a very 
religious and good man and, in addition to carrying on the regular work of 
his farm, was also a minister of the Gospel. During his service in the army 
he acted in the capacity of chaplain of his company. 

After the subject's marriage he established his home on a sixty-acre farm 
which his father owned about a mile and a half northeast of Brownsburg and 
there they lived for four years. He then purchased eighty acres directly 
east of the Bethesda church in Brown township, and there the family lived 
for fourteen years. He then traded that for one hundred and twelve acres 
of land in Boone county, remaining there nine years, when he again traded 
that for another farm in Boone county, but never lived thereon, for he almost 
directly turned that for the one hundred and fifty acres where he now lives, 
a short distance north of Brownsburg. To Mr. and Mrs. Nash have been 
born four children, namely : Clarinda, the wife of W. J. Everitt, of Indian- 
apolis. They have two children, Chauncy and Edith. The second child, 
Olna Isaac, married Elma Smith and they reside on Mr. Nash's farm about 
a cjuarter of a mile from subject's residence. They have two boys, Carl and 
Clifford. Sallie married D. F. Smith and lives a short distance northwest of 
Brownsburg. She is the mother of five children, Lester. Millie, Victor, 
Harold and June. The youngest daughter. Ova L., married Porter Phillips 
and lives in Los Angeles, California. They are the parents of two boys, 
Avery and William M. Mr. and Mrs: Nash are both members of the 
Christian church and the family is regarded as among the foremost of the 
community. Mr. Nash has always been regarded as a supporter of move- 
ments having for their object the material advancement of the community, 
while his influence in promoting the social and moral welfare of his fellow 
men has been second to none. He has always been regarded as a man of 
upright principles, industrious and kind-hearted to those in need and few men 



3/6 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

in the community are more favorably known than he. By reason of the ex- 
cellent business judgment which he possesses, coupled with his untiring 
energy and ceaseless endeavor, he has succeeded well financially, and while so 
doing never lost sight of the principles that make for strong, upright man- 
hood. Consequently, he has the admiration and respect of those who know 
him. 



LUKE W. DUFFEY. 



It must be conceded that in this age of enterprise and marked intellectual 
energy, the successful men are those whose abilities lead them to assume the 
responsibilities and labors of leaders in their respective fields of endeavor. 
Success is methodical and consecutive and represents the concrete result of 
the determined application of individual abilities and powers along rigidly 
defined lines of labor, whether mental or manual. 

Luke W. Duffey, a Hendricks county boy, has acquired a wide reputa- 
tion as a real estate operator, and his operations have included the handling 
and improving of many properties of important order. He is also a recog- 
nized factor in the "Good Roads" movement in America and as chairman of 
the good roads committee of the Lidianapolis Chamber of Commerce has 
been one of the most enthusiastic workers in the commendable cause of good 
roads. As a frequent delegate to the American Road Congress he has 
wielded a potent influence both as a worker and as an orator. He is a force- 
ful and logical speaker on road betterment, a subject to which he has given 
much study and on which he is now recognized as an authority, having been 
appointed by Governor Ralston to lead a state highway commission as its 
secretary. He was elected by the Indianapolis Real Estate Board to 
make the address for Indianapolis in the convention at Winnipeg, Canada, 
in 1913, where there were seventy-five cities represented, and a correspondent 
for an English newspaper gave him rating and credits over the Springfield, 
Ohio, representative who won the contest in which they were participating. 

Mr. Duffey is a native of Hendricks county, born October 24, 1879, 
the son of Squire Eli F. and Nancy J. Duffey, who are now residents of 
Plainfield, this county. He is a grandson of Michael Duffey, who settled 
at Belleville, Liberty township, Hendricks county, in 1842, and whose father 
fought under Washington in the memorable revolutionary struggle to free 
the American colonies. On the maternal side he is the grandson of Elam 
Benbow, who came from Carolina and settled in Clay township, Hendricks 




LUKE W. DUFFEY 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 377 

county, in 1S28 with his father, the latter entering a quarter section of land 
upon which a portion of the present town of Amo is situated. 

After finishing his common school education, Luke Duffey entered the 
Central Normal College at Danville in the autumn of 1897. He completed 
the course in law and was admitted to the Hendricks county bar August 4. 
1900. AVhile in attendance at the college he worked in private families for 
his board and took care of the office of Brill »& Harvey for the privilege of 
using the books and getting better acquainted with the routine of work in a 
law office; here he developed a definite knowledge of the statutes of descent, 
becoming an expert titleman and thereby developing his real estate talent. 
He later became interested in the real estate business and has since devoted 
his energies and talents to this field exclusively. His success was assured 
from the first. Extensive deals soon gaiifed for him a reputation that reached 
far beyond the boundaries of Hendricks county, and in 1910, seeking a larger 
field, he removed to Indianapolis and established the Luke W. Duffey Farm 
Sales Company, with offices at No. 8 West Ohio street, a large and substan- 
tial enterprise, specializing in farm lands, though buying and selling realt^' 
of all kinds m various parts of the country. 

Mr. Duffey has probably done as much as any man living to boom his 
home county. He has laid out three of the finest additions to the town of 
Plainfield and constructed more than a score of their most beautiful and 
substantial homes, and to him must be given .credit for the appearance of 
the great western w-ing of Indianapolis, which has sprung up like a mush- 
room in response to some able advertisements that he has written on the ad- 
vantages offered in that section lying west of Eagle creek and between the 
Hendricks county line and the city proper. He has platted the Sterling 
Heights tract, ]^ookout Plaza, Duffey's Second Addition to Lookout Plaza, 
Lookout Garden, and is credited with having first conceived the idea of this 
territory as a town site, which has now something like two thousand homes 
to evidence his judgment as a far-seeing real estate man. 

Mr. Duffey is also proprietor of the famous Hotel De Hoss, the largest 
livery in the state of Indiana. He has always been interested in the live 
stock business and is a frequent speaker and judge at stock shows and con- 
ventions. He is a member of the Indianapolis Real Estate Exchange and 
was appointed vice-chairman of the agricultural development committee of the 
International Real Estate Exchange, the purpose of w^hich is to co-operate with 
the House and Senate committees of Congress, with the Canadian Parliament 
and wnth the National Bankers Agricultural Committee to bring about im- 



3/8 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

proved farming" conditions. He is a Mason, a Knight of Pythias and a 
Modern Woodman ; he holds a birthright membership in the Quaker church, 
and is an active memljer of the IndianapoHs Commercial Club. 

Luke Duffey is a progressive and public-spirited citizen with a program. 
Poverty did not dishearten him, misfortune deter him, nor hardships turn 
him a hair's breadth from his course. His whole nature is dominated by 
the spirit of progress. He has shown marked executive ability and has 
handled his independent business with much of prescience and skill, so that 
his operations have yielded to him due returns and have proved of value to 
those whom he has served in his professional capacity. His success is the 
more gratifying to contemplate on the score that it represents the direct re- 
sults of his own labors and ability. He has been dependent on his own 
resources from early 3^outh, and has made his business career by. his own 
indomitable energy, and the scrupulous care and honor he gives to every 
transaction entrusted to him as given him a large and growing patronage. Per- 
sonally, he is genial, obliging and is universally popular. 



HERSCHEL ELSWORTH DAVIS. 

To write the personal record of men who have raised themselves from 
humble circumstances to a position of responsibility and trust in a community 
is no ordinary pleasure. Self-made men, men who have achieved success by 
reason of their personal qualities and left the impress of their individuality 
upon the business and growth of their place of residence and affect for good 
such institutions as are embraced in the sphere of their usefulness, unwit- 
tingly, perhaps, build monuments more enduring than marble obelisk or 
granite shaft. 

Herschel Elsworth Davis is a Hoosier by birth, born in Boone county 
on September 9, 1861, the son of Speer Bruce and Mary Ann (Smith) Davis, 
the former of whom was born in Scott county, Minnesota, the latter being a 
native of Hendricks county, having been born near Brownsburg. Speer B. 
Davis was a young physician who came to Hendricks county in 1855 and 
took up the practice of his profession in Brownsburg and Boone county. At 
the outbreak of the Civil War he enlisted and for three years served as 
surgeon on the hospital corps. In 1858 he was united in marriage with Mary 
Ann Smith, of Boone county, whose death occurred while he was at the 
front. They had two little sons and one of them also died while the father 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 379 

was absent At the close of the war, Doctor Davis returned to his home in 
Boone county and took the remaining child, the subject of this sketch, to his 
former home in Minnesota, there to be cared for by his people. When the 
subject was seven years of age, he was again thrown on the mercies of the 
world owine to the complete disappearance of his father, who was not heard 
from for a great manv vears. In the meantime, the Smiths, parents of the 
subject's mother, sent to ^linnesota and had the child returned to Boone 
county and to them, and there he remained until his marriage. 

On ^larch 8, 1887, Mr. Davis was united in marriage with Anna Lump- 
kin a daughter of George W. and Sarah (Harrison) Lumpkin, born in 
Boone countv, Indiana, on April 30, 1866. George W. Lumpkm was a 
native of Tennessee, born on December 8, 1825, while Sarah (Harrison) 
Lumpkin, daughter of Eli and Rachel Harrison, was a Hoosier by birth 
born m Kokomo on September 2, 1828. Eli Harrison was first sheriff of 
Howard countv, Indiana. George W. Lumpkin came from a family who had 
early settled in Tennessee and was a son of Richard and Rebecca Lumpkin, 
the former of whom was a soldier of the War of 1812. After his marriage, 
Mr Davis continued to reside in Boone county on a rented farm fo^ about 
a vear when he came over into Hendricks county and lived on rented land 
for four years. At that time he purchased his present farm of thirty-four acres, 
which was absolutelv without improvement and in an almost primeval condi- 
tion It cost him thirtv dollars per acre and recently he refused an ofter of 
two hundred and twenty-five dollars per acre, preferring to remain on the 
land he has so finelv improved and to enjoy the fruits of his labors, hor 
ten years Mr.' Davis did gardening and attended the city market in Indianapo- 
lis during all that time. His ceaseless effort and untiring energy have won 
him material success and while winning a competence he ever conducted his 
business in such manner as to receive the confidence and respect of those who 
knew him. as well as from his business acquaintances. Mr. and Mrs. Davis 
have one child, a daughter Emma, who remains at home She .attended 
Brownsburg high school and early displayed marked musical ability. After 
the conclusion of her high school work, she took up the study of music m 
Indianapolis, attending the Metropolitan School of Music for three years, 
and has made herself an artist of no mean ability. She now teaches instru- 
mental music in Indianapolis. r ^ nu • ^^ 

Mr and INIrs. Davis and Miss Emma are all members of the Christian 
church and take an active part in the affairs of same. Mr. Davis' fraternal 
afi^liation is with the Knights of Pythias and in the work of that order he 
takes a pleasurable interest. Mrs. Davis is engaged in the poultry business, 



380 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

making a specialty of White Wyandottes and is doing well with them, ship- 
ping more poultry and eggs than any one else in her community. The fam- 
ily is placed among the leading ones of the community and stand high in 
public estimation. Mr. Davis' career, although strenuous and to a marked 
degree progressive and successful, has always been characterized by honest 
dealing. He is well known throughout the county and highly respected by 
all because of his clean life and upright and honorable dealings with his 
fellow men. 



JAMES M. OGDEN. 



Indiana has always been distinguished for the high rank of her bench 
and iDar. Perhaps none of the newer states can justly boast of abler jurists 
or attorneys. Many of them have been men of national fame, and among 
those whose lives have been passed on a quieter plane there is scarcely a town 
or city in the state but that can boast of one or more lawyers capable of 
crossing swords in forensic combat with many of the distinguished legal 
lights of the country. While the growth and development of the state in the 
last half century has been most marvelous, view-ed from any standpoint, yet 
of no one class of her citizenship has she greater reason for just pride than 
her judges and attorneys. In James M. Odgen are found united many of 
the rare qualities which go to make the successful lawyer and jurist. He 
possesses perhaps few of those brilliant, dazzling, meteoric qualities which 
have sometimes flashed along the legal horizon, riveting the gaze and blinding 
the vision for the moment, then disappearing, leaving little or no trace be- 
hind ; but rather has those solid and more substantial qualities which shine 
with a constant luster, shedding light in the dark places with steadiness and 
continuity. 

James M. Ogden, a successful lawyer, lecturer and author of Indianapo- 
lis, was born in Danville, Indiana, April 5, 1870. His parents were Jesse S. 
and Mary A. (Carter) Ogden. His father, Jesse S., was a remarkable man 
and the reader is directed to his sketch elsewhere in this volume for the story 
of his life. Mr. and Mrs. Jesse Odgen were the parents of three children, 
Rev. Horace G., D. D., of Jamestown, New York, pastor of the First Metho- 
dist Episcopal church of that place; Mrs. Adella L. Duvall, a prominent so- 
prano singer of Delaware, Ohio, and James M., of Indianapolis. 

James M. Ogden received his elementar}^ and high school training in 
the public schools of Danville. He was only seven years old when his fa- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 381 

ther died, and grew up without a father's care, but no mother ever looked 
after the welfare of her children more solicitously than Mrs. Ogden. After 
his graduation from the high school at Danville he taught school in the dis- 
tricts in Hendricks county for one year, and then entered DePauw Univer- 
sit}- at Greencastle, making his ow^n way through college, and graduated in 
1894 with the degree of Bachelor of Philosophy. During the next two years 
he was principal of the high school at Kendallville. Indiana, and saved his 
money in order to enter the law school at Harvard. From 1896 to 1899 he 
was in attendance at the Harvard Law School and graduated in June. 1899, 
with the degree of Bachelor of Laws. He then returned to Indiana and 
began the practice of law in the office of Judge Byron K. Elliott, and con- 
tinued with him for eighteen months, since which time he has practiced alone 
with offices in the State Life building, Indianapolis. He is a frequent lec- 
turer on legal topics and is one of the regular lecturers before the Indiana 
Law School in Indianapolis. He has a high reputation as a legal writer and 
in his volume on "Negotiable Instruments," published in 1909, he has writ- 
ten a book which has received the high commendation of jurists throughout 
the countrv. His first work in the line of legal writing was in connection 
with Judge Byron K. Elliott, whom he assisted in his four-volume edition 
on "Evidence". He has also written many special articles for encyclopedias 
of law. He has conferred a boon upon Indiana lawyers by publishing a 
volume entitled "Indiana Lawyers' Manual of Practice," a volume which 
should find a place on the shelves of every law^yer in the state. His law 
practice is riot confined to Indianapolis and Marion county, but he has many 
clients also in adjoining counties. He is rapidly forging to the front as one 
of the men who really understand the law and are able to give a sympathetic 
reading of the same. The poetical truth concerning the tempering of jus- 
tice with mercy finds a willing follower in him, a fact which has gained for 
him clients of a high class. 

Air. Ogden has always taken a prominent part in Republican politics, 
and was the nominee of his party for the House of Representatives from 
Marion county in 1906. Although he was defeated, he led the legislative 
ticket, which is an indication of the popularity in which he is held in his 
county. He has frecjuently been urged to make the race for Congress and 
has been offered the nomination for various judgeships in Indianapolis, but 
has ahvays declined, feeling that he could do more good in his private prac- 
tice. For manv years he has been the attorney of the foreigners in Indian- 
apolis and has been highly complimented for his work in looking after their 
interests. He is a member of the Indianapolis Bar Association, and has 



382 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

been officially connected, either as an ■ officer or on its various committees, 
for the past ten years. He is a member of the Indiana Bar Association, and 
takes an active interest in the annual meetings of the association. 

Fraternally, Mr. Ogden is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons 
and the Modern Woodmen of America. While in college he w^as a member 
of the Sigma Chi Greek-letter fraternity, and still interests himself in this 
organization of his college days. He is now one of the board of trustees of 
DePauw University. He is a member of the board of directors of the Young 
Men's Christian Association, of Indianapolis, and has served in that ca- 
pacity continuously for the past twelve years. He is also a member of the 
board of directors of the Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce, and a member 
of the official board of the Meridian Street Methodist Episcopal church, of 
Indianapolis. 

James M. Ogden was married November 11, 1903, to Bess Alice Dean, 
daughter of Irving M. and Cora (Laycock) Dean, of Indianapolis, and to 
this happy union there have been born three children, Elizabeth Ann, de- 
ceased; Mary Ann and James M., Jr. Mr. Ogden is a man who is devoted 
to his domestic life and the Ogden home is the center of many hospitable 
gatherings of friends and acquaintances. Mr. Ogden has led a very busy 
and useful life and now he. is in the prime of his usefulness to society and the 
future only can reveal what good he may yet accomplish. 



THOMAS J. NASH. 



It is not an easy task to describe adequately a man who has led an 
eminently active and busy life, and who has attained a position of relative 
distinction in the community with which his interests are allied. But 
biography finds its most perfect justification, nevertheless, in the tracing and 
recording of such a life history. It is, then, with a full appreciation of all 
that is demanded and of the painstaking scrutiny that must be accorded each 
statement, and yet with a feeling of satisfaction, that the writer essays the 
task of touching briefly upon the details of such a record as has been that 
of the honored subject of this sketch, whose eminently honored and suc- 
cessful career now comes under review. 

Thomas J. Nash, whose entire life has been passed within the borders of 
Hendricks county, first saw the light of day on December 22, 185 1. He is 
the son of Isaac C. and Cilicia (W^ilson,) Nash, the former of whom was a 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 383 

native of Ohio and the latter a native of A'irginia, Ijoth coming to Indiana 
from their native states when children. Isaac Nash was a son of Thomas 
Nash, who settled jnst south of Brownsburg. When he was about twenty- 
one years old, Isaac Nash was united in marriage with Cilicia Wilson, and 
they took up their abode on a farm of forty acres lying about one mile east 
of Brownsburg and for this whole farm he gave but one hundred and fifty 
dollars. They lived there the remainder of their lives and there reared their 
family of nine children, of whom Thomas J., the immediate subject of this 
sketch, was one. 

Thomas J. Nash remained under the paternal roof until in 1882, when 
he was united in marriage with Emma A. Patterson, daughter of Daniel and 
Sarah (McDaniel) Patterson, both of whom were natives of North Carolina, 
coming soon after their marriage to Hendricks county, this state. Emma A. 
was one of their family of four children and remained with her parents until 
the time of her marriage. Directly after their marriage, the subject and 
his wife took up their residence on a farm about a mile and a half west of 
Brownsburg, where they remained two years, when they purchased a farm 
containing one hundred and eight acres, located about three-quarters of a 
mile north of their present location. There they remained for fourteen years, 
when they purchased their present home place of one hundred and sixty-one 
acres, which is about one mile north of Brownsburg. Mr. Nash has engaged 
in agricultural work all his life and his untiring energy, combined with busi- 
ness ability of a high order and the employment of up-to-date methods in 
the conduct of that business, has proved him to be a man capable of handling 
affairs even more complicated than those to which he has given his attention. 
Mr. and Mrs. Nash are the parents of four children, one of whom, a son, 
Harvey, died in infancy. Lilly, a daughter, became the wife of John T. 
Hofford, a son of Frank and Mary A. Hofford of near Brownsburg, and they 
make their home just south of Brownsburg. They have two children, Eloyd 
and Loran. Leroy, a son, married Ellen F. White, daughter of Ernest and 
Nettie (Anderson) White, of near Brownsburg. Leroy resides just across 
the public highway from his parents and they have one child, Leona. The 
only child remaining with Mr. and Mrs. Nash is their daughter Mabel. 

Mr. and Mrs. Nash are earnest members of the Christian church, to 
the support of which they give liberally, and in their younger years gave 
much active service toward furthering the work of that society. Both ]\Ir. 
and Mrs. Nash have been unsparing in their efforts to make their home at- 
tractive and helpful to others and a cordial welcome has ever awaited both 



384 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

friend and chance caller alike. Mr. Nash has been a consistent man in all 
that he has ever undertaken and his career in all the relations of life has 
been absolutely without pretense. His actions are the result of careful and 
conscientious thought and when once convinced that he is right, no sug- 
gestion of i^olicy or personal profit can swerve him from the course that he 
has decided upon. He is essentially a man of affairs, sound of judgment 
and far-seeing in what he undertakes and he has won and retains the esteem 
and confidence of all classes. 



J. HAROLD GRIMES, M. D. 

Although but a short time a resident of Danville, the subject of this 
sketch has, by his professional ability and high personal character, already 
stamped his impress upon those with whom he has come in contact and is 
rightly numbered among the most progressive and enterprising physicians 
of this city. In the realm of medicine and surgery he has had the best train- 
ing which the colleges of this country can give and his record as a student 
is sufficient to warrant him success in his chosen profession. He is a mai) of 
fine intellectual and professional attainment, of most gracious personality 
and of strong character, and he has started in his career with the one end in 
view, namely, to alleviate human suffering. . He is devoted to his chosen 
vocation and has lent honor and dignity to the medical profession, having 
due regard for the higher standard of professional ethics and exhibiting 
marked skill in the treatment of diseases. 

J. Harold Grimes, the youngest practicing physician in this county, was 
born in Millville, Pennsylvania, January 26, 1887, the son of Robert Brvson 
and Mary (Johnson) Grimes, who were both natives also of Pennsylvania, 
and are now living in Catawissa, that state. Robert B. Grimes is a foremost 
merchant in that town. 

Doctor Grimes graduated from the Millville high school in his native 
state and then finished the course at the Bloomsburg State Normal School. 
He then began the study of medicine at Chicago University in the fall of 
1908, graduating from this institution in 1912. From the time of his 
graduation until he opened his office at Danville, he was in St. Mary's Hos- 
pital at Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he made an enviable record as an 
interne. He located in Danville, Indiana, on July 15, 1913, and opened uj) 
an office for the general practice of medicine, including surgical work of all 




J. HAROLD GRIMES, M. D. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 385 

kinds. He is a member of the Michigan State and Kent County (Michigan) 
Medical Societies, also the Hendricks County Medical Society, the Indiana 
Medical Society and the American Medical Association. Fraternally, he is 
a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, the Knights of Pythias, the 
Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Benevolent and Protective Order 
of Elks, while socially, he is a member of the Greek-letter fraternity, Phi 
Delta Theta. 

On June 3, 1914, Doctor Grimes was married to Ruth Rooker Parr, the 
daughter of John and Pearl (Rooker) Parr. John Parr is a retired farmer 
and land owner of St. Charles, Missouri. 

Doctor Grimes has a brilliant future before him and with the technical 
training which he has had, he promises to be one of the leading physicians of 
this section of the state within the next few years. 



WILLIAM W. GIBBS. 



The true measure of individual success is determined by what one has 
accomplished. An enumeration of those men who have succeeded in their 
special vocations in Hendricks county and at the same time are impressing 
their personalities on the community, men who are conferring honor on the 
locality in which they reside, would be incomplete were there failure to make 
mention particularly of the gentleman whose name initiates this paragraph, 
for he is an important factor in the business life of his community. The 
splendid success which has come to him has been the direct result of the 
salient points in his character, for, with a mind capable of laying judicious 
plans and a will strong enough to carry them into execution, his energy, fore- 
sight and perseverance have carried him forward to a position in the front 
rank of the successful men of his community. He has carried forward to a 
successful completion whatever he has undertaken and his business methods 
have ever been in strict conformity with the standard ethics of commercial 
life. He has taken an intelligent interest in the civic life of the community 
and has earned the high regard in which he is held by all who know him. 

William W. Gibbs is a native of the state of New York, being born near 

the city of New York on December 28, 1854, a son of William and Elizabeth 

(Burden) Gibbs, both of whom were natives of Devonshire, England, the 

former being the son of John and Betsy Gibbs. William and Elizabeth 

(25) 



386 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. \ 

Gibbs emigrated to the United States in 1844, settling in New York, where 
they resided for two or three years, afterward coming westward to Indiana 
and locating in Marion county about five miles south of the city of Indian- 
apolis, and there they remained for about fifteen years. They then came to 
Hendricks county where they bought a tract containing eighty acres in Brown 
township, and on that land they passed the remainder of their lives. 

William W. Gibbs was one of a family of ten children and when he was 
but eleven years old his father was drafted for service in the War of the 
Rebellion, which, owing to his large family and their limited circumstances, 
worked considerable of a hardship on him. He felt it was out of the ques- 
tion for him to go to the front, leaving his wife and helpless little ones, and 
through the kindness of a brother-in-law and a Mr. Everitl he was provided 
with the necessary amount to purchase his exemption. This cost him thirteen 
hundred dollars, and this amount he repaid as rapidly as he was able. Will- 
iam W. Gibbs remained under the parental roof until the time of his mar- 
riage, assisting his father in the work of the home farm and also working out 
through the community by the day or month. After marriage he lived for 
one year on the farm where he now lives and then rented a tract of land in 
Boone county., where the family resided for twelve years. They then came 
back to the farm in Hendricks county and have remained thereon for over 
nineteen years. Mr. Gibbs is considered one of the most successful farmers 
in the county, displaying business ability of a high order in the conduct of 
his affairs. This, coupled with untiring energy and a boundless ambition, 
have placed him high in public estimation. 

On May 30, 1882, Mr. Gibbs was united in marriage with Mary A. 
Sandusky, daughter of James and Susan (Morgan) Sandusky, the former 
being a native of Kentucky. His father, Jacob Sandusky, was a man of 
considerable means and large sympathies. He owned a large plantation and 
was also a large slaveholder. He treated his people with kindness and con- 
sideration, being regarded as an ideal master, and at the beginning of the 
agitation of the slavery question he freed his colored people. Susan Morgan, 
mother of the wife of the subject, lived in Indianapolis at the time of her 
marriage and. when her daughter Mary was but four years old. she de- 
parted this life, leaving also a little son. The father took his children to 
Kentucky, the old home, to place them in the care of relatives. There they 
remained until the time of his second marriage, some two years later, when 
he broue^ht his little family to the farm which his father had given him in 
Brown township, this county. It was an unusually large farm for this 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 38/ 

section of the country, consisting of some eight hundred and eighty acres, 
and on this estate Mary A. Sandusky Hved until the time of her marriage 
to the subject. To their union has been born one child, Forest Chester, who 
remains at home. This son completed the grade schools when remarkably 
young and took up his work in high school, intending to secure an excellent 
education. However, ill health compelled him to close his books and he took 
up work on the farm, being his father's assistant and devoting his energies 
to the study of the best manner of handling crops, stock, etc., along approved 
scientific lines. 

Mrs. Gibbs is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and the 
family is regarded as among the leading ones of the county. Air. Gibbs 
has ever enjoyed the esteem and respect of those who know him for his 
friendly manner, his business ability, his interest in public affairs and upright 
living and he is regarded by all as one of the substantial and worthy citizens 
of the community in which he resides. In addition to his regular duties, 
]Mr. Gibbs finds time for some outside connections and is connected with the 
Brownsburg State Bank, being a stockholder in same. He is, therefore, 
eminently entitled to specific mention in a work of the scope intended in the 
present one. 



HARRISON S. BARLOW. 

To a great extent the prosperit}^ of the agricultural sections of our 
country is due to the honest industry, the sturdy persistence, the unswerving- 
perseverance and the wise economy which so prominently characterize the 
farming element of the Hoosier state. Among this class may be mentioned 
the subject of this life record, who, by reason of years of indefatigable labor 
and honest effort, has not only acquired a well merited material prosperity, 
but has also richly earned the highest esteem of all with whom he is 
associated. 

Harrison Smith Barlow is a native of this county, having been born in 
Lincoln township, about three miles southwest of Brownsburg, on October 
15, i860, the son of Harvey Rice and Sarah Jane (Smith) Barlow. Sarah 
Smith was a native of the state of Kentucky and came to Indiana while 
• young and it is thought possible that Harvey Rice Barlow also came from 
the same place. Sarah Smith's father, whose wiie was named Hannah, 
entered a tract of land from the government, this land lying near Danville, 
this county. There they lived for a number of years, the mother ciying 



388 ■ HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

while Sarah was still a small child. After his marriage, Harvey Rice Barlow 
purchased land in Washington township and there he built a saw and grist 
mill, which was run by water power. He later traded this 1)usiness and 
farm for a tract of land about three miles south of Brownsburg and there 
passed the remainder of his life, his death occurring in 1872. The mother 
died in 1896. It was on this farm that the subject of this sketch first saw 
the light of day, being one of a family of seven children. He remained under 
the parental roof until the time of his marriage, when he purchased the farm 
where he was born. About 1902 or 1904, Mr. Barlow sold the old homestead 
and purchased a farm some two miles southwest of Brownsburg, where he 
lived for some six or eight years, when he purchased his present farm of 
fifty-two acres something over a mile northwest of Brownsburg. Here he 
carried on general farming and its kindred interests. At one time, Mr. 
Barlow gave particular attention to the raising of fancy vegetables, ahvays 
having an elaborate display at both the state and county fairs. 

On March 15, 1882, Mr. Barlow was united in marriage with Emma B. 
Fogleman, a native of North 'Carolina and the daughter of William and 
Elizabeth (Ferguson) Fogleman, her birth occurring about 1865. Elizabeth 
Ferguson, her mother, was a daughter of Archibald and Sarah Ferguson. 
William Fogleman left his original home in North Carolina and removed to 
Missouri when Mrs. Barlow was a child of three years. They lived there 
some three years and then came eastward again, stopping in Indiana, where 
they located in Hendricks county, in the town of Plainfield. Mr. Fogleman 
was a carpenter by trade, and both he and his wife died when Emma B. was 
fifteen years old, she being one of a family of three children. After the 
death of her parents, she was taken into the home of William Hadley, a 
l^rother of Judge Hadley, and remained there until the time of her marriage. 

Mr. and Mts. Barlow have had three children, one of whom, Charley 
Ambrose, died when thirteen years of age. Gertie, a daughter, is the wife 
of Wilbur Lowder and they have two children, Herbert and Annis. Their 
home is about one mile north of that of the subject. The other child, Clara 
William, married Willis Pruitt and they live on a farm in Marion county, 
about seven miles northwest of the 'city of Indianapolis. 

Politically, Mr. Barlow has always been identified with the Republican 
party, taking an active interest in its campaigns. He served as road super- 
visor for twelve years, and during that time did much to improve the high- 
ways of the county. His religious connection is with the Presbyterian 
church, both he and his wife being members of same and taking an active 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 389 

interest in the society, co.titributing of both time and means to further the 
cause. His fraternal affihation is with the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
lows and the Knights of Pythias, in the work of which societies he takes- a 
keen interest, and Mrs. Barlow is a member of the women's degrees of these 
orders, being both a Daughter of Rebekah and a Pythian Sister. She also 
belongs to the Woman's Relief Corps. 

There is much that is commendable in Mr. Barlow's life record, for he 
has been found true to duty in every relation, whether of a public or private 
character, and while energy and untiring industry have been ralient features 
of his business career, he is equally well known for his uprightness and the 
honorable methods he has always followed and for his loyalty to any trust 
imposed in him. Because of his genial and unassuming disposition and his 
genuine worth, he enjoys a well deserved popularity throughout his county. 



ELMER L. FUSON. 



The eentleman, to a brief review of whose life and characteristics the 
reader's attention is herewith directed, is among the favorably known and 
representative citizens of Amo, Hendricks county, Indiana. By his indomi- 
table enterprise and progressive methods he has contributed, in a material 
way, to the advancement of his locality and during the course of an honora- 
ble career is fairly successful in his business enterprise, being a man of energy, 
sound judgment and honesty of purpose, and is thus well deserving of men- 
tion in this volume. 

Elmer L. Fuson, the son of R. A. and Elvira (Allison) Fuson, was born 
in Crawford county, Illinois, January 20, 1872. R. A. Fuson was educated in 
Crawford county, Illinois, and after leaving school worked, for a time, on 
the farm. He then began preaching in the Missionary Baptist church, and 
continued in the service of the ministry for the remainder of his life. He 
married Elvira Allison, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Harvey Allison, and 
to this union four children were born, Thomas C, Elmer L., Martha A., who 
married Thomas Smork, and Mary, who died at the age of seven. 

Elmer L. Fuson was fortunate enough to be educated in several different 
states, his father's occupation as a minister taking him to many different 
localities. He attended school in Kansas. Illinois and Indiana, and several 
schools in each state. Upon reaching mature years he took up the barber 



390 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

trade, at Urownsburg, Indiana, and after he had mastered the trade, he lo- 
cated in .\mo, this county, where he worked for about six years. He then 
took up the insurance business, Hfe, fire and accident, and has continued 
in that hue of endeavor since. He has made a special study of the insurance 
business and is now recognized as one of the prominent insurance men in 
the central part of the state. He is claim agent for the Farmers National 
Life Insurance Company, of Chicago, Illinois, an organization incorporated 
under the laws of Indiana. He has made a wonderful success as an in- 
surance man and has built up a very lucrative business. 

jMr. Fuson was married February 14, 1894, to Flora Garrison, the 
daughter of Joel and Amanda (Bryant) Garrison, and to this union have 
been born four children, Madeline and Gwendolene, who died m infancy; 
Wendall and Wen f red, twins, born March 5, 1901. 

The paternal grandfather of Mr. Fuson was Judson A. Fuson, a native 
of Ohio, who came as a young man to Illinois, locating in Crawford county, 
where most of his children were born. He then went to Missouri, where 
he lived until his death, at the age of eighty-six years. He was a minister, 
in the Missionary Baptist church, during all his life. He was married to 
Elizabeth Taylor and to this union nine children were born, John L., Stephen 
A., William, George B., Roland A. (father of the immediate subject of this 
sketch), Alvin, Mary, Jane and Alice. William Fuson, the great-grand- 
father of Elmer L. Fuson. was a native of Virginia and was a minister in the 
Missionary Baptist church for sixty-five years. 

Mr. Fuson has been a prominent Republican and has taken an active in- 
terest in politics, both in local and state conventions. He was appointed 
deputy state oil inspector by Governor Frank J. Hanly and served in this 
capacity for three years. He is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, 
at Coatesville, Indiana, and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, being 
treasurer of the latter lodge. Mr. Fuson has made a pronounced success 
of his new line of work and deserves great credit for branching out in a 
new line of business. He is rapidly building up a list of clients in Amo and 
vicinity, and in the course of a few years he promises to be one of the most 
prominent and influential insurance men of the state. With his genial per- 
sonality and cheery way of talking there is no reason why he should not con- 
tinue to be as successful in the future as in the past. By his honest dealings 
he has won the confidence of his associates and it is confidence that spells 
success. His life shows what a young man can do who starts out with 
nothing, and is determined to succeed in spite of all obstacles and hindrances. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 39^ 



LEON EATON. 



One of the best known and most enterprising of the younger agricul- 
turists of Hendricks county is Leon Eaton, now in the very prime of hfe 
and usefulness, and his influence as an honorable, upright citizen is productive 
of much good upon all with whom he comes in contact. His past success 
gives assurance of something yet to come, and he is evidently destined to 
continue a potent factor for substantial good for many years to come. The 
farm he is tending, now belonging to his mother, is one of the fine farms m 
Brown township, which he conducts in a manner that stamps him as fully 

abreast of the times. 

Leon Eaton is a native of Brown township, having been born here on 
October I, 1881, the son of Henry L and Allie (Herring) Eaton, both of 
whom were also natives of Brown township, Hendricks county, the former 
being the son of Greenup and Cynthia (Watson) Eaton and the latter the 
daughter of Jackson and Isabelle (Worrel) Herring, who were both natives 
of ITarrison county. Kentucky. When quite small, both were brought to 
Indiana bv their respective parents, both families locating near Clayton m 
Hendricks countv. where the young people in question grew to manhood and 
womanhood and where their marriage was later solemnized. There were 
four children in their family, Allie, mother of the subject of this sketch, 
remaining under the parental roof until the time of her marriage. 

Henry L Eaton, father of the subject, remained on his father's home, 
some two miles north of Brownsburg, until the time of his marriage in 1879, 
when he took up his residence on a farm about five miles northwest of 
Brownsburg, living there about a year and a half. After that, they made 
several changes in their place of residence, at one time residing in Indian- 
apolis again in Danville, where he owned a livery stable, which he later sold 
and retunied to the farm. Li November, 1898, he was elected sheriff of 
Hendricks county on the Republican ticket, having always taken an active 
interest in that party's affairs. He served as sheriff for two years, after 
which he received the appointment as superintendent of the Hendricks county 
farm There he lived for eighteen months, resigning before the expiration 
of his term. He then became deputy sheriff under Sheriff Figg. serving in 
this capacitv until September. 1904, when he removed to the home now occu- 
pied by his" family and where he passed the remainder of his life, his death 
occurring January 20. 1906. Henry L Eaton was a man of great force of 
character and was rightlv regarded as one of the leading citizens of his com- 



392 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

munity. He was a member of the Knights of Pythias and, aUhough not 
affiliated with any rehgious body, he was a loyal supporter of the Baptist 
denomination, doing all within his power to further the interests of that 
organization. 

Leon Eaton has lived under the paternal roof all his life, attending the 
schools of Hendricks county when a boy. In March, 1906, he was united 
in marriage with Edna M. Herring, daughter of Thomas and Tira (Watson)' 
Herring, natives of Hendricks county, residing near Brownsburg. He 
brought his bride to his mother's home and there they have since resided. 
To their union have been born four children, Wallace Edward, Keller Allen, 
Mary Constance and Lawrence Leon. Mr. Eaton is an active member of 
the Republican party, serving as township committeeman and also serving 
as a deputy sheriff both under his father and Sheriff Figg, although never 
having been sworn into that office. His fraternal affiliation is with the 
Knights of Pythias, Mrs. Eaton being a Pythian Sister. Mrs. Eaton is a 
charming woman with a host of friends. She is a graduate of Browns- 
burg high school and active in social affairs of the community. Mr. Eaton 
is wide awake to the best interests of the community and gives a whole- 
hearted support to all movements for the good of his fellows. He has a 
wide acquaintance and is well liked by all who know him. 



PERRY HUNT. 



One of the conspicuous names on the list of Hendricks county agricul- 
turists is Perry Hunt, owner of two hundred acres of excellent land in 
Marion, Center township, a gentleman of high standing, to whom has not 
been denied a full measure of success. Long recognized as a factor of im- 
portance in connection with the farming and stock-raising industries here, 
he has been prominently identified with the material growth and prosperity 
of this part of the state, his life having been closely interwoven with the 
history of the county where he has been content to live and follow his chosen 
vocation throughout his life. 

Perry Plunt was born on August 8, 1858, on the old homestead farm 
in Marion township, this county, the son of Ithamer and Fanny Jane (Bush) 
Hunt. Ithamer Hunt came of an old American family of English ancestry. 
Both his grandfathers were named Hunt and were distantly related. Eliezer 
Hunt was a farmer in Guilford county. North Carolina, where he passed 




PERRY HUNT 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 393 

away at the age of eighty years. His son Asher was born in that county, 
was reared a Quaker and married Jane Hunt, daughter of Al)ner and Mary 
(Starley) Hunt, who was a very distant connection. Asher Hunt came west- 
ward into Indiana, where he settled in SulHvan county and entered about 
two hundred acres of government land, which he put into cultivation and 
where he lived for about sixteen years. At the end of that period he came 
to Hendricks county and purchased a farm in the eastern part of Marion 
township, where he passed the remainder of his life, his death occurring in 
his eighty-fourth year. He was twice married. His first wife died in 
Sullivan county and he again married, his second wife being Abigail Foster. 
Both he and his wives were Quakers, honorable and industrious and highly 
respected by all. 

Ithamer Hunt, son of Asher Hunt and father of the immediate subject 
of this sketch, was a Hoosier by birth, born while his father was living in 
Sullivan county, and was fourteen years of age when his father came to 
Hendricks county. He passed his youth and early manhood under his 
father's roof and when twenty-five years of age was united in marriage with 
Fanny Jane Bush, daughter of John and Elizabeth (Norton) Bush, the 
former of whom was one of the pioneers of this county, having come here 
from Kentucky at an early date. He was an honorable and upright citizen 
who did much for the community at that early date. He died at the age of 
fifty-three years. Ithamer Hunt was a thoroughly good man, absolutely 
honest both with himself and others. He lived a strictly religious life, ad- 
hering firmly to the principles of his life. He was a very prosperous man 
and won his way through persistent energy and excellent management. He 
was a life-long farmer and at his death owned something over six hundred 
acres. His death occurred on May 14, 1903, at his home on the New Win- 
chester road, at the age of eighty-one years. He had a birthright in the 
Friends church for twenty-one years, but afterwards became a member of the 
Baptist church. He was a consistent and faithful member and a liberal 
contributor to all benevolent and religious objects. He never sued nor was 
sued, avoiding all controversies and litigations, and never paid a cent of 
interest, so conducting his business, which was considerable, that interest was 
not incurred. He was a devoted husband and, while a strict disciplinarian, 
was a kind and loving father and a genial and helpful neighbor. He was a 
thoroughly manly man and a devout Christian, absolutely without ostenta- 
tion, cant or hypocrisy. He was a man of peace, quiet and unobtrusive, 
never used profane language nor intoxicating liquors in any form. In poli- 



394 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

tics he was a stanch RepuhHcan. although taking no active part in the affairs 
of the party. 

Perry Hunt grew from childhood into manhood on the homestead, re- 
maining under his father's roof until the time of his marriage, in the mean- 
time receiving from his father instruction in the secrets of successful agri- 
culture and having firmly implanted on heart and mind the right principles 
of life. After marriage he came to his present farm, or, more properly 
speaking, eighty acres of it. He has increased the size of his farm to two 
hundred acres, winning his increase by persistent effort, untiring energy and 
good management. His farm is one of the best in the community, with 
excellent residence and other buildings, and all attest to the up-to-date 
methods of the owner. He is progressive in his work, putting brains as well 
as brawn into whatever he undertakes. In addition to his general work, 
he gives particular attention to two excellent strains of cattle, Polled Dur- 
hams and Shorthorns. He raises for the market and also breeding purposes 
and is now giving especial attention to a herd which he intends to exhibit. 
He is an excellent judge of stock and takes great interest and pride in this 
phase of his business. 

In politics Mr. Hunt is an old-line Republican and takes an interest in 
local politics, while never desiring an office. Both he and his wife are mem- 
bers of the Friends church at Hadley and contribute generously of their 
time and means to fostering the principles of that society. 

On August 21, 1882, Mr. Hunt was united in marriage with Loretta E. 
Hadley, daughter of Mathias and Matilda Hadley, the former of whom was 
a native of Hendricks county and died at his home in Clay township in 1895. 
The wife preceded him one year into the great beyond. Both Mr. and Mrs. 
Hadley were members of the Friends society and lived quiet, useful lives. 
While earnestly desiring every good for the varied life of his community, 
Mr. Hadley chose to do his share quietly. He did not care for public office, 
nor for any lodge. They were the parents of eleven children, two of whom 
died in infancy. Those beside Loretta, wife of the svibject, are Leora (Mrs. 
Harvey); Alzora, who died in California, where she had made her home; 
Orlando, who died at his home near Indianapolis; Ozella (Mrs. Furnace); 
Orien, who lives on the homestead farm in Clay township, this county; Ozro, 
deceased, who lived in Plainfield ; Orvis, who resides at Amo, and Elnora 
(]\Irs. Shirlev), who also lives in Clay township, just west of the old home- 
stead. 

To Mr. and ]\Irs. Perry Hunt have been born five children, namely: 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. ^JS 

Fauna, who married Clav A. Vannice. a native of this county, born near 
\ew Alavsville. He is a farmer and they reside in Center towsnhip, south 
of Danville. Thev have no children. Ona R. is a school teacher, teachmg 
one vear in Marion. The two years previous she taught m the school ot 
Cent'er township. Her early education was received in the township schools 
near her home; later ^he attended the high school at Danville, from which 
she was graduated, and later she studied for a year at Earlham College, Rich- 
mond, this state. Later on, she took a twelve-weeks teachers" course at the 
Danville Normal College. Ray, the voungest of the family, remains at home. 
However, he has taken the short course at Purdue University, Lafayette. 

Two children died in infancy. 

Perrv Hunt is a worthv son of his father and stands high m public esti- 
mation He is a kind and loving husband and father and an excellent 
neiohbor in everv respect. He has proven himself an honorable member of 
the^odv politic, proving himself thoroughly worthy of confidence and esteem 
in ever; phase of life. He has never fallen below the dignity of true man- 
hood nor in anv wav resorted to methods that have invited criticism or cen- 
sure As a citizen he is easily ranked with the most influential of his com- 
peers and is ever looking toward the betterment of his community. His 
course has ever been such as to win from tho.e who know him nothing but 
praise for his broad-mindedness and excellent qualities of heart and mmd. 



ANDREW S. GARNER. 

Ao-riculture has been the primal source of man's dominion on earth 
ever since the existence of labor and has been the pivotal industry that has 
controlled, for the mo.st part, all of the fields of action to which his intelli- 
gence and ener^v have been devoted. Among the sturdy element ot Hen- 
dricks countv whose labors have ].rofited alike themselves and the con>. 
munity in which they live is the gentleman whose name appears at .he head 
of this sketch and, in view of the consistent life record lived by the subject, 
it is particularly fi.tting that the following short record of his career oe in- 
corporated in a book of this nature. 

-Andrew S. Garner, enterprising citizen and successtul farmer of Brown 
township. Hendricks county, Indiana, was born on the family homestead, 
the home which he now occupies, on Alarch 9. iS.S^, being the son of Har- 
rison and Frances (Lowder) Garner. Harrison was a son ot Solomon and 



396 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Deborah Garner, who came originally from Kentucky. Francis Lowcler, 
mother of the immediate subject of this sketch, was a daughter of Solomon 
and Jane (Leonard) Lowder, and was born in the state of North Carolina, 
being lirought to Indiana by her parents while still a small child. Harrison 
Garner was eight years old when his parents came to Indiana and his father 
entered one hundred and sixty acres of land in Brown township, Hendricks 
county, part of which tract the subject now resides on. This land was then 
in virgin forest and Solomon Garner began the laborious task of converting 
his wilderness into well tilled fields and a comfortable home. Before his 
death Solomon Garner deeded the forty acres south of the road to his son, 
Harrison, who lived thereon until his death. Harrison Garner never had ad- 
vantages in the way of schooling, and grew to manhood whollv untutored 
in the way of books. However, he w'as of an ambitious and inquiring turn 
of mind and after his marriage he attended a night school, where he learned 
to write, and became still more determined to educate himself. He became, 
through his own efforts, a man who w^as considered well read, for his time 
and community, and was regarded as one of the leading men of his day. He 
was an earnest advocate of the principles of the Democratic party, and took 
an active part in the administration of its affairs in his locality. He was one 
of the first road officers in Brown township, and, through his efforts, much 
w^as accomplished in this line. He served as road supervisor for a number 
of years. He was married to Frances Lowder. in 185 1, and to their union 
was born a family of nine children, the subject of this sketch being the 
oldest child of the family. 

Andrew S. Garner attended the district schools of Hendricks county 
when a youth, and remained at the family home until the time of his mar- 
riage, in the meantime receiving, under intelligent direction of his father, 
the secrets of successful agriculture. His marriage to Marguerite Adams, 
daughter of John Adams, took place on February 14. 1877, and they took up 
their abode on a farm about one mile northwest of his father's home, residing 
there until the time of the wife's death in 1880. After the death of his 
wife he came back to his paternal home where he remained for ten years. In 
1890 he chose as his second wife, Emily J. Leonard, daughter of Lindsey and 
Amanda (Spencer) Leonard, both of whom are natives of North Carolina. 
They came to Indiana about 1861. locating in Hendricks county, where 
Emily J. was born, near Amo. on June 2, 1872. After his second marriage 
Mr. Garner again moved to his farm and there remained until the death 
of his parents, when he came back to the old homestead and has since resided 
there. Mr. Garner has two children by his second wife, namely: Mary F., 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 397 

who was graduated from the Brownsbiirg high school and is now studying 
music at the IndianapoHs Conservatory of Music, Indianapolis. The second 
child is Walter Lee, now a student at the Brownsburg high school. 

Politically, Mr. Garner is a staunch Democrat, as was his father before 
him, and he also takes an active interest in the party's work. Some years ago 
he was road supervisor and the highways, under his care, were in as excellent 
a state as it is possible to keep them. While not a member of any church. 
]\Ir. Garner is interested in the affairs of the Baptist church, of which his wife 
is a member, and to the support of which he contributes. Mr. Garner's career 
has been one of honor and trust. He has been a consistent man in all that 
he has undertaken and his actions in all the relations of life have been abso- 
lutely without pretense. He has ever been anxious to do all in his power 
to further the moral or material interests of his c;ommunity and his family 
stand high in the regard of all who know them. He is, therefore, eminently 
entitled to representation in a work of the scope of the one in hand. 



WILLIAM PENNINGTON. 

An enumeration of the representative citizens of Hendricks county would 
be incomplete without specific mention of the well known and popular gentle- 
man whose name introduces this sketch. A member of one of the old and 
highly esteemed families of this locality and for many years a public-spirited 
man of affairs, he has stamped the impress of his individuality upon the 
community and added luster to the honorable name which he bears, having 
always been actuated by a spirit of fairness in his dealings with the world in 
general, and leaving no stone unturned whereby he might benefit his own 
condition as well as that of his friends and the favored section of the great 
commonwealth in which he has been content to spend his life. Straight- 
forward and unassuming, genial and obliging, Mr. Pennington enjoys the 
good will and respect of a wide circle of friends throughout this part of the 
state. 

William Pennington, who enjoys an enviable reputation in his part of 
the county because of his eminent success as a farmer, is a native of the 
Hoosier state, having been born in Boone county on August 12, 1841, the 
son of Isaac and Delpha (Guilliams) Pennington, the former of whom was 
a native of Kentucky, the latter being from Virginia. When nine years old 
she was brought by her parents to Putnam county, and from there they 



398 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

went to Hendricks county, locating in the northern portion of Brown town- 
ship. She was a daughter of Richard and Rosani (Scott) Guilhams, both 
natives of Germany, who came to this country while yet children. Richard 
Guilliams was a son of William and Delpha (Hunter) Guilliams, and was a 
patriot in the War of 1812. Rosani Scott Guilliams was a daughter of 
\\'illiam and Christena (Sellers) Scott, William Scott also being a hero of 
the War of 1812. Isaac Pennington, father of the immediate subject of 
this sketch, came with his parents to Jamestown, Indiana, when he was 
about ten years old. He remained under the parental roof until his marriage, 
on September 18, 1836, when he took up his residence on a.farm in Boone 
county, just west of Fayette. He was a stanch supporter of the principles 
of the Democratic party and was considered one of the leading men, of his 
community in his day. He was the father of a family of seven children, 
of whom the subject of this sketch was one. 

William Pennington passed his boyhood in Boone county, receiving his 
education in the district schools of that county, and later assisting his father 
in the work about the home place. In 1862, near the beginning of the 
Civil War, he enlisted for service in Company G, Seventy-ninth Indiana 
Volunteer Infantry, and saw much active service. He was in the battles of 
Chickamauga, Chattanooga, Perryville and other engagements. During the 
battle of Stone's River he was taken prisoner and was confined in Libby prison 
for sixty days. He was sent to Annapolis, Maryland, from there, and 
thence home. Four months after his capture he was back with his regiment 
and served without special incident until the close of the war, being mustered 
out of service at Nashville, Tennessee, in June, 1865. He returned to his 
father's home, where he remained until in 1868, when he was united in mar- 
riage to Lucinda Doyal, born October 5, 1852, a daughter of Edward and 
Sarah Ann (Howard) Doyal. They were natives of Lewis county, Kentucky, 
who had come to Indiana in 1839, and settled in Hendricks county in the 
northeast part of Brown township. Edward Doyal was a son of John and 
Christena Ann (Davis) Doyal. John Doyal was a native of the state of 
Pennsylvania, whe^e his father had settled when he emigrated from Ireland. 
Christena Ann Davis was a native of Maryland and was of French ancestry. 
Sarah Ann Howard, mother of Mrs. Pennington, was born in Kentucky, but 
both her parents, Samuel and Ellen (Fort) Howard, were from Baltimore, 
Maryland. After his marriage the subject of this sketch lived on a rented 
farm in Boone county for two years and at the end of that time he re- 
mo^'ed to the farm where he now resides, which farm was left to him by 



I 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 399 

his wite's father, Edward Doyal. There they have passed a great many 
years, rearing and educating their family of eight children, having lost but 
one. Charles F., the eldest son, took as his wife Lela Shirley, daughter of 
Levi and Jane (Roberts) Shirley, and they make their home in the north- 
eastern part of Brown township. They are the parents of two children, 
Ova and Hazel, both of whom are attending school in Indianapolis. Ova 
graduated from Manual Training high school in 1914. ' Charles F. Penning- 
ton is one of the leading men of his community and is at present serving as 
trustee of Brown township, the duties of which position he is discharging in a 
manner highly satisfactory to every one. He is engaged in teaching in the pub- 
lic schools, having taught twenty-five consecutive terms. Dora F., a daughter 
of Air. Pennington, is a teacher of English in the city schools of Indianapolis, 
having received her higher education at the State Normal School, at Terre 
Haute, and also being a graduate of Indiana University at Bloomington. 
Ernest L. married Ava Brouhard, daughter of Marion Brouhard, of near 
Zionsville, Indiana, and lives at Wichita, Kansas, where he is a carpenter 
and contractor. He is the father of one daughter, Frances. Bertha also is a 
teacher in the public schools of the state, being stationed at present at 
West Baden, Indiana, where she is instructor in domestic science. She is a 
graduate of Shortridge high school at Indianapolis, spent three years in 
study at Butler College, Indianapolis, and took her special training in domes- 
tic science at Bradley Institute, Peoria, Illinois. Three of the children, 
Edward I., Clarence O. and Harley W., remain at home with Mr. and Mrs. 
Pennington. 

Mr. Pennington's mother is still living, at the advanced age of ninety- 
seven years, and has the distinction of being the oldest woman in the county. 
She is hale and hearty in spite of her years and still retains an excellent 
memory. For many years she has been a member of the Baptist church. 
Mrs. William Pennington is a member of the Christian church, to the support 
of which Mr. Pennington contributes, although not a professor of religion 
himself. He is considered among the foremost farmers in the county and his 
farm of one hundred and fifty-five acres shows what up-to-date methods in 
agriculture can accomplish. Mr. Pennington stands in the frunk rank as a 
man who honors his calling in the present day and, because of his industry, 
integrity and genuine worth, he stands high in public estimation. As a citizen 
he easily ranks with the most influential in his community and is ever 
looking toward the betterment of those about him. Upright in every relation 
of life, he is eminently worthy of mention in a biographical work of the 
scope intended in the present one. 



400 HENDRIQKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

JAMES L. DARNELL. 

There could be no more comprehensive history written of a city or 
county, or even of a state and its people, than that which deals with the life 
work of those who, by their own endeavor and indomitable energy, have 
placed themselves where they well deserve the title of "progressive," and in 
this sketch will be found the record of one who has outstripped the less active 
and less able plodders on the highway of life, one who has not been subdued 
by the many obstacles and failures that come to every one, but who has made 
them stepping stones to higher things and at the same time that he was win- 
ning his way in the material affairs of life gained a reputation for upright- 
ness and honor. 

James L. Darnell, the proprietor of the "Yaller Front," was born in 
Danville, August 25, 1854. His parents were John F. and Virginia (Dicks) 
Darnell, his father being a native of Kentucky and his mother of Indiana. 
John F. Darnell came to Hendricks county when a small boy with his mother 
and located in Danville. He was a carpenter by trade, but later went into 
the mercantile business, which he managed until his death, in 1897. ^"^is 
wife died about four years later. Mr. and Mrs. John F. Darnell were the 
parents of eight children, six of whom are living: Charles S., of Indianapo- 
lis, Indiana; Dora, the wife of A. S. Pierce, of Colorado; Kate, the widow 
of Frank Gladden, of Texas; Rhoda May Howell, of St. Louis, Missouri; 
Mrs. Jennie Calvert, of Texas, and James L., the immediate subject of this 
sketch. 

James L. Darnell was educated in the public schools of Danville, and 
at the age of eighteen became a salesman in an Indianapolis clothing store, 
remaining there for eight years. He then began to indulge his desire for 
travel and for the next two years was salesman for the Famous Shoe and 
Clothing Company, of St. Louis. Following this he worked for mercantile 
establishments in New Orleans, Denver, Springfield, Missouri, and other 
places in the West, spending a short time working in San Francisco. He 
then returned to Indianapolis, where he remained for a short time, but the 
wanderlust seizing him, he went west again and took service with a farmer 
near Keokuk, Iowa, at fifteen dollars per month. He had the management of 
twenty to thirty farm hands, and he had the native abilitv to do his work 
well. The owner recognized his capacit)' and increased his salar}^ to fort}^ 
dollars per month and gave him the entire management of the farm. How- 
ever, he soon returned to Indiana because of his father's declining health, 




JAMES L. DARNELL 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 4OI 

and for five years before his father's death he was in his father's store. Upon 
the death of the latter he continued the grocery business and has been re- 
markably successful. He is a very popular and prosperous grocer and is one 
of the busiest and most enterprising merchants in this part of the state. 

I\Ir. Darnell was first married in 1878 to Nancy Reed, of Danville, and 
to this marriage there were born three children: Edith, the wife of C. P. 
Bond, of Boston, Massachusetts; Ralph, deceased, and Bessie, the wife of 
Rev. George Kline, of Glenwood Springs, Colorado. Mrs. Darnell died in 
1891. and in 1895 Mr. Darnell was married to Alargaret Cook, the daughter 
of Silas and Mary Cook, of Danville. 

James Darnell is a Democrat in politics, but has never taken an active 
part in the political game. Paternally, he is a member of the Knights of 
Pvthias and, religiouslv. is affiliated with the Presbvterian church, havine 
long held the office of deacon in that denomination. Mr. Darnell is one of 
the most active mem.bers of the Danville Commercial Club and is one of the 
most enthusiastic boosters for a greater Danville. He has given a great deal 
of thought and energy in organizing the Business Men's Club, of Danville, 
in order to bring factories and capital to his local to\vn. He is interested 
himself in the Danville Creamery and Danville Canning Companv, being a 
stockholder in both companies. He is a broad, generous and worthy busi- 
ness man and citizen. His store, familiarly known as the "Yaller Front," 
is rapidly becoming a household w^ord in Hendricks county, and bv his ac- 
commodating, genial and business-like way, he has built up a large business. 



lOEL B. GARRISON. 



Among the men of Hendricks county who have been important factors 
in the building up of the county is Joel B. Garrison, who, as a farmer and 
blacksmith, has been a prominent citizen of the community in which he lives 
for more than a half century. He was born in Putnam county, Indiana, 
December 6, 1845, the son of Jeremiah and Rebecca (Shaw) Garrison, both 
natives of New Jersey, wdio, after their marriage on January 24, 1826. came to 
Indiana and settled in Hendricks county early in the thirties. Thev remain- 
ed in this covmty only a short time, when they moved to Putnam county, but 
after a short stay in that county they returned to Hendricks county, where 
they remained for the rest of their lives. Jeremiah Garrison was a shoe- 
(26) 



402 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

maker and followed this trade all his life. He was married three times, 
and to him and his wife, Phoebe Whit, were born three children, Phoebe, 
Edward and Jane. His second wife was Ruth Erskine and to this marriage 
were born three children, Archibald, Mary J. and Sallie. His third marriage 
was to Rebecca Shaw and to this last marriage nine children were born, 
Ann, Eleanor, Arminda, Rebecca, Joseph, Charles W., Francis, Eliza and 
Joel. Ann married Thomas B. Borders; Eleanor died in childhood; Amanda 
married James Vermillion, and after his death, William Alley; Rebecca, de- 
ceased; Joseph married Susan Zearing; Charles W. married Jerush Wil- 
cox ; Francis married Josie Laton ; Eliza married Jesse Brazer. 

Joel B. Garrison attended the common schools, near Stilesville, Indiana, 
for only a short time. When he was eighteen years of age he enlisted in 
Company B, Fifty-ninth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and served 
from February 25, 1864, to July 7, 1865. He then returned to his home and 
engaged in the blacksmithing trade, which he followed for about thirty-five 
years. He then purchased a farm and since that time has devoted himself 
to agricultural pursuits. 

Mr. Garrison was married January 19, 1869, to Amanda Bryant, the 
daughter of Silas and Matilda (McCormack) Bryant, and to this union were 
born four children : Flora Alice, who married Elmer Fuson, and has two 
children, Winifred and Wendall; Rossie became the wife of Osro Hadley 
and has one child, Ethelyn; Don A., who married Bernice Owen and has 
one child, Helen Lucile; Elsie, who married O. Harper. 

Mrs. Garrison's parents had a family of nine children: Lucy, the wife of 
Martin Sims; John married Ruth Sharp; Amanda, wife of Mr. Garrison; 
Nancy, wife of Mr. Balldock; Clementine, deceased; William, who married 
Helen Stingier; Anderson, deceased; Albert, and Woodford, who married 
Mary Clark. Mrs. Garrison's father had the distinction of being the first 
white child born in Hendricks county. His death occurred in 1899 and his 
wife died in 1913. 

Joel Garrison, the grandfather of the subject of this sketch, was a 
soldier in the Revolutionary War. Jeremiah Garrison, the father of Joel 
B., died June 5, 1857, his wife having died ten years previously, October 15, 
1847. 

Mr. Garrison has been a life-long member of the Republican party, 
although he has never had any political office. He is a member of the Free 
and Accepted Masons and holds his membership in the Baptist church of 
Stilesville. During his long and busy life in this community he has so con- 
ducted himself as to win the sincere respect and esteem of all who know him. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 4O3 

R. M. HADLEY. 

The two most strongly marked characteristics of both the East and 
West are combined in the residents of Indiana. The enthusiastic enterprise 
which overleaps all obstacles and makes possible almost any undertaking in 
the comparatively new and vigorous ^^^estern states is here tempered bv the 
stable and more careful policy that we have borrowed from our Eastern 
neighbors, and the combination is one of unusual force and power. It has 
been the means of placing this section of the country on a par with the older 
East, at the same time producing a reliability and certainty in business 
affairs which is frequently lacking in the West. This happy combination of 
characteristics is possessed to a notable degree by the subject of this review, 
R. M. Hadley, of Plainfield. He is too well known to the readers of this 
work to need any formal introduction here, for he not only comes of a 
family whose name is deeply engraved in the financial, commercial, profes- 
sional and industrial history of this section of the state, but he himself is 
filling a large place in the public affairs of his community. Recognized as a 
man of strong and alert mentality, deeply interested in everything pertaining 
to the welfare of the community along material and civic lines, he is re- 
garded as one of the progressive and enterprising men. of his city and county. 

Among the native sons of Hendricks county, Indiana, who have risen to 
a place of prominence in their community, there is no one who has filled a 
higher niche in his home town than R. M. Hadley, who was born November 
23, 1863, in Washington township, this county. His parents were Hiram 
and Mary Elizabeth (Martin) Hadley, the father being a native of this 
county and his mother of Fulton county, this state. His father was a farmer 
by occupation and after his marriage went to Nebraska, where he lived the 
remainder of his life. Mr. and Mrs. Hiram Hadley were the parents of 
seven children: Ollie and Effie, both deceased; R. M., the immediate sub- 
ject of this sketch; C. L., of Plainfield, Indiana; Lucinda, deceased; James 
G., of Plainfield, and D. F., of New York. 

R. M. Hadley w^as educated in the district schools of Washington town- 
ship, this county, and spent his boyhood days when not in school working on 
the home farm. He accompanied his parents to Nebraska, and upon reach- 
ing his majority he engaged in the grocery business at Fairmount, Nebraska, 
and subsequently conducted the same business in Lincoln, that state, for a 
number of years. Later, for a few years, he traveled out of Lincoln for a 
wholesale grocery house, afterwards being transferred to Indianapolis, and 



404 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

after traveling out of Indianapolis for six years he came to Plainlield in 
P>brnary, 1908, and purchased the dry goods store of A. J. Shaw, which he 
has conducted since that time. Mr. Hadley carries a large and well-;elected 
stock of dry goods and kindred lines, caters to the trade and by his courtesy 
and evident desire to please his customers has succeeded in building up a 
large and lucrative patronage in Plainlield and surrounding countrv. 

Mr. Hadley was married December 31, 1885, to Adah Keith, of Fair- 
mount, Nebraska, the daughter of Calvin and Abbie Keith, and to this union 
there have been born two children, Claude, deceased, and Hiram Irvin, 
twenty-two years of age, who is now in the piano business in Plainfield. 
Fraternally, Mr. Hadley is a member of the' Modern Woodmen of America 
and, with his w-ife, is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church of Plain- 
field and for many years has ])een one of its trustees. Politically, Mr. Had- 
ley is a Republican, but has^ been too Inisy a man to devote much attention 
to public affairs, though his party did elect him to the office of town treasurer, 
in which he rendered valuable service for his fellow citizens. Also he was 
prevailed upon to accept the office of town clerk and is now filling that posi- 
tion in a very satisfactory manner. In the civic life of the community Mr. 
and Mrs. Hadley have been potent factors for the development of the best 
interests of the people. Mr. Hadley is a man of pleasing address and easily 
makes friends with all with whom he comes in contact. Because of his 
upright character and marked ability and pleasing disposition he is num-. 
bered among the most popular residents of Plainfield. 



EDWARD F. NASH. 



Among the earnest men whose enterprise and depth of character have 
gained a prominent place in the community and the respect and confidence 
of his fellow citizens is the honored subject of this sketch. A leading farmer 
of the township where he resides, and a man of decided views and laudable 
ambitions, his influence has ever been exerted for the advancement of his 
kind, and in the vocation to which his energies are devoted he ranks among 
the representative agriculturists of the county. 

Edward F. Xash, member of a family w ho for years have been numbered 
among the good citizens of this county, was born on December 24, 1853, 
and has the distinction of having lived his entire life within the bounds of 
Hendricks countv, one of the favored regions of the state. He is a son ot 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 405 

Isaac C. and Celicia (Wilson) Nash, the former being a native of the Buck- 
eye state, being born in Madison county on March 27, 181 7, and when only 
eight years old he was 1)rought to Indiana l)y his parents, Thomas and 
Hannah (Brown) Xash, the family locating about two and one-half miles 
south of Brownsburg. Isaac remained under the paternal roof until the time 
of his marriage, attending the early schools of Hendricks county in his 
boyhood, and later l)eing instructed in the secrets of successful agriculture, 
under the tuition of his father. He was twice married, his first wife being 
Celicia Wilson, mother of the immediate subject of this sketch, to whom he 
was united in marriage on January 28, 1841. Celicia Wilson was a native 
of Virginia, born on March i, 1817, the daughter of A\'illiam J. and Nancy 
Wilson. They came to Indiana when Celicia was twelve or fifteen years of 
age, and settled on a farm some four miles south of Brownsburg, where 
they reared a family of eleven children. Celicia always resided at home 
until the time of her marriage. Her death occurred on December 13, i860, 
and she left a family of nine children, the youngest a l^abe but three days 
old. About that time three deaths occurred in the Nash family, coming quite 
close together. At the time of the marriage of Isaac C. and Celicia Wilson 
Nash his entire family, including parents, brothers and sisters, moved out 
west, leaving him the sole representative of the family in Hendricks county. 
His parents he never saw again, their deaths occurring while they were resi- 
dents of Missouri. 

On April 19, 1864, Isaac Nash was united in marriage with his second 
wife, Eliza Jane Faucett, daughter of Joseph and Rebecca N. (Hurron) 
Faucett. This union was without issue. Mrs. Nash's death occurred on 
July 24, 1909, lacking a short time of attaining her eighty-seventh year. 
Isaac C. Nash died September 25, 1897. He was regarded as one of the 
leading men of his community and was one of those unselfish men who 
did all within his power to advance the moral and material welfare of his 
friends and neighbors, often neglecting his own work to assist in some- 
thing partaking of a public nature. He hauled the logs used in the 
erection of the first business house in Brownsburg, driving a yoke of oxen. 
In his later life he enjoyed telling of how he would help his neighbors all 
day, in rolling logs, returning home near nightfall and would work until 
midnight on his own land endeavoring to get it into proper shape for cultiva- 
tion. He was a rigid churchman, being a member of the Presbyterian church, 
and took an active part in futhering the cause of that society. 

Edward F. Nash received his early education in the district schools of 



406 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

his community, remaining with his father until' twenty-six years old, at 
which time he was united in marriage with Sarah C. Garner, daughter of 
Harrison B. and Frances (Lowder) Garner. The Garners were originally 
from Kentucky, the Lowders coming to Indiana from the Carolinas. After 
marriage Mr. Nash took up his residence on a farm owned by his father and 
about three-quarters of a mile from the old home place, being some two miles 
northeast of Brownsburg. There they lived until 1881, when they removed 
to the present home, about two and one-half miles northwest of Browns- 
burg. Mrs. Nash died on March 27, 1896, leaving two children: Bertha, wife 
of Benjamin C. Weddle, son of Simon and Angeline (Bishop) Weddle, of 
Hendricks county. Bertha has one son, Marion, living and a little son, Paul, 
died when seven years old. The second child of Mr. Nash is Effie, who be- 
came the wife of Thomas L. Burns, son of James and Rebecca (Patterson) 
Burns, of Hendricks county. Effie is the mother of five sons. Laurel, Louis, 
Leroy, Norman and Aubrey. 

Mr. Nash's religious affiliation is with the Baptist church, the family 
identifying itself with the workings of same. He is also a member of the 
Brownsburg Horse Thief Detective Association and does all within his power 
to further the interests of all in his community. He is a man of sound 
practical intelligence who is keenly alert to everything relating to his interests 
and, in fact, with all that concerns the prosperity and advancement of his 
community. Because of his splendid personal characteristics and his genuine 
worth, he enjoys the confidence and esteem of all who know him and is 
eminently entitled to representation in a work of the character of the one at 
hand. 



NATHAN H. KENDALL. 

In every district we find a few sturdy families who grow up and de- 
velop with the country, by their industry and steadfastness adding to the 
stability of the community as a whole, becoming" an integral part of the 
social and business life of the place, and by their inherent conservatism 
adding a dignity to those undertakings with which they are associated. 

To such a family belongs the subject of this article, Nathan H. Ken- 
dall. Long a resident of Liberty township, though unassuming and un- 
aggressive, he has been closely associated with the educational and religious 
growth of the surrounding country until his name is well known far beyond 
the confines of his immediate neighborhood. He is the only son of Ahimaac 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 407 

and Minerva Kendall and descends from a long line of sturdy, industrious 
tillers of the soil. Like his ancestors, he has established himself as a sub- 
stantial member of the commonwealth, well known and highly esteemed. 

More than a century ago, before the days of steam and electricity, Mr. 
Kendall's grandparents, Nathan and Ruth Harvey, left their home in North 
Carolina, taking the long and perilous journey westward, finally selecting for 
their abiding place a spot in Parke county, Indiana. To them, in 1832, was 
born a daughter, Minerva, who grew to maturity and married Ahimaac 
Kendall, a young farmer. His parents, James and Sally (Bayles) Kendall, 
were also natives of North Carolina. They, too, braved the terrors of the 
long, lonely journey westward, obtaining land from the government in Mor- 
gan county, Indiana, near the present site of Mooresville. Here their son, 
Ahimaac, was born in 1833. Six years later they moved to Hendricks county 
and here their son was married to Minerva Harvey. Like their parents, the 
young people spent their days upon the farm, becoming substantial members 
of society. To them were born four children, Nathan H., Sallie A. (Robin- 
son), Mary A. (Stipe), and Lydia E., single and living with her mother. 

Though he belonged to no lodges and aspired to no political office, 
Ahimaac Kendall was esteemed by all who knew him as an intelligent, loyal 
citizen and an influential member of the Friends church at Mill creek. Death 
came to Air. Kendall at the ripe age of seventy-nine years, on November 11, 
191 2. he being at that time near Danville, Hendricks county. His widow 
now resides with a daughter near New Winchester. Nathan H., his only 
son, was born November 30, 1856, in Clay township, Hendricks county, 
Indiana, two miles southeast of Amo. Here Nathan spent his boyhood and 
received his schooling, and here, in 1877, he was married to Mary E. Smith. 
At the age of thirty years he came to Liberty township, his present home, 
where he purchased one hundred sixty acres of good land. This is 'now a 
beautiful country home in that most ideal setting, a well cultivated, liberally 
stocked farm. Surrounding Mr. Kendall are the fruits of his toil, the tangi- 
ble evidence of a life well spent — surroundings which say to the most casual 
beholder, "Within abides a man of sterling worth." 

That Mr. Kendall has the highest confidence of his fellow men is evi- 
denced by the fact that he was selected for ten consecutive years as director 
of the schools of his district, before the present system of graded schools was 
introduced into the township. For twelve years, also, he has been an elder 
in the Christian church at Clayton, where Mrs. Kendall is also an influential 
member In politics, he was known as a Republican until the formation of 



408 HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 

the new Progressive party, in 1912, since which time he has lent his in- 
fluence to its growth. 

Mr. Kendall is the father of five children. Owen, Milber, Alarcena, 
Goldie and Ethel. Ow^en, the eldest son, married Nellie Ratliff, and resides 
in Liberty township. He, too, follows the pursuit of agriculture, and has one 
child. Villa. JMilber, the second son, married Effie Woods, and lives on a 
farm two miles southwest of Pecksburg. Fie holds a position of responsibil- 
ity in the First National Bank of /Vmo. Goldie, the eldest daughter, is the 
wife of Cecil ]\Iartin, a farmer, and lives near her father. She is the mother 
of one daughter, Audrey. Ethel is in far-away South Dakota, her husband, 
Earl Given, being instructor in the Indian school at Smithwick. Two chil- 
dren. Dean and Elenore, have been born to them. 

This history would not be complete without further mention of Mr. 
Kendall's most faithful ally in all his undertakings, his devoted wife, and 
her family. Mrs. Kendall was the second of nine children born to Asa and 
Julia (Trullinger) Smith. These were Emma, who married George Beemer, 
]\Iary (Mrs. Nathan Kendall), Margaret (Mrs. Kitchens), Frank, Cath- 
erine ( Mrs. Kenneth ) , Theodore, Edward, Charles and Delia. 

Asa Smith, the father, was born in Kentucky, but while yet an infant 
was brought by his parents to Covington, Fountain county, Indiana. Here 
they remained until he grew to manhood, moving to Vermillion county and 
later to Danville, Illinois, when .Vsa was about twenty-five years of age, 
their son accompanying them. This w'as his home until death called him, 
October 15, iqio. He led the life of a farmer, taking no active part in 
lodges nor political affairs, giving his energies to his home and family. He 
and Mrs. Smith were both affiliated with the Missionary Baptist church. 



HENRY SIMPSON COX. 



Among the citizens of Clay township, Hendricks county, Indiana, who 
ha\'e built up comfortable homes and surrounded themselves with valuable 
landed estates and personal property, few have attained a higher degree of 
success than the subject of this sketch. With few opportunities excei)t what 
his own efforts were capable of mastering and with many discouragements 
to overcome he has made an exceptional success in life and in his old age has 
the gratification of knowing that the community in which he resides has been 
benefited by his presence and his counsel. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 4O9 

Henry Simpson Cox. one of the largest landowners in Clay town--hip, 
Hendricks county, Indiana, was born in the township where he has lived for 
the past sixty-six years. He is the son of William and Lucy ( Plasters) Cox. 
and was born on September 12, 184S. ^^'illiam Cox was a native of Morgan 
county, and his wife was born in tliis county, ^^'"illiam Cox moved to this 
county when he was a young lad with his parents and after leaving school 
he worked on his father's farm until he was twenty },'ears of age. He then 
married Lucy Plasters, the daughter of William and Polly (Cleveland) 
Plasters, and rented land for a few years, after which he purchased a farm 
in Middle township, where he lived until his death. April 15, 1S81. his wife 
surviving him until 1884. To IMr. and i\Irs. ^\^illiam Cox were born six chil- 
dren : John M.. who died in childhood; William D.. who died from injuries 
received from being kicked by a horse; Mary C, the wife of Stephen Morb- 
ley; James M., who died in infancy; Charles, who married Fanny Leachman, 
and Henr}- Simpson. 

Henry Simpson Cox attended school in the rude log structures of his 
dav, and received a practical education in the three "R"s," which were the 
only subjects in the curriculum at that time. He was early taught all of the 
ins and outs of farming life by his father, and when he married and started 
to operate a farm of his own, at the age of twenty-five, he was well equipped 
for the profession of farming. As a successful tiller of the soil he has few 
peers in the county and his farm of two hundred and nineteen acres bears 
glowing testimony to his success along agricultural lines. 

Mr. Cox was married, February 3, 1874, to Mary Frances Flynn, daugh- 
ter of Alfred and Artemesia (White) Flynn, and to this happy marriage 
have been born four children: Eva, who married Gus Bartholomew, and 
they have two children, Edgar and Hazel; Jennie married Fra nk Stanley ; 
William Dayton, who is unmarried and still at home, and Alice, who also is 
under the parental roof. 

Mincher Cox. the grandfather of the subject of this sketch, was one of 
the thousands of North Carolinians who came to this state. He came here 
as a young man and first settled in IMorgan county, near Mooresville, where 
he farmed and engaged in the buying and trading of horses. He seemed to 
have been an adventurer of more than ordinary pretensions. We are told 
that on one of his numerous horse-selling trips lie took a small pacing horse 
and drove it from Morgan county to Chicago, but when he reached the out- 
skirts of that city a trapper offered him twenty acres of land for the horse, 



410 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

but his o£fer was refused. It is not related, however, just what he did get 
for the horse. Mincher Cox married in Morgan county and afterwards 
moved to Clay township, in Hendricks county, where he remained for about 
eight years. The wanderlust then seized him and he moved to Grant county, 
Indiana, where he remained until his death. He married Sarah Nichols, and 
to this union six children were born, all of whom are deceased : William, 
the father of Henry Simpson: Lydia, who married John Scharey; Harriett 
married Daniel Hollingsworth; Louisa became the wife of Austin Williams; 
James A., who married Lena Hathaway, and Thomas, who died unmarried. 

The mother of Henry Simpson Cox was the daughter of William and 
Polly (Cleveland) Plasters, and was one of nine children, the others being 
as follows: John, who married Rebecca Bullard; Betsy became the wife of 
Michael Higgins; Eveline became the wife of Cyrus Moore; Phoebe mar- 
ried Alfred Stanley; Jacks(5n; Polly became the wife of Buckner Highton; 
William married Mary Burgner; Sallie became the wife of Bunk Burnett, 
and Lucy, who married William Cox. 

The father of Mrs. Henry S. Cox was Alfred Flynn, a native of Ken- 
tucky. He was reared on a farm in that state and after his marriage moved 
to Clinton county, Indiana, where he remained for about six years. He then 
moved to Hendricks county and located on a farm in Middle township, where 
he remained until his death, November lo, 1908, his wife having preceded 
him in death in 1898. He had married Artemesia White, the daughter of 
William and Polly \Vhite, and to that union were born nine children : Mary 
Frances, the wife of Henry S. Cox; John, who married Martha Arnold; 
Nancy, who became the wife of Thomas Day; Louisa, who married Frank 
Burchman: George: William: Frank; Ella, who married William Smith; 
Ollie, who married Josie McCall. 

Mr. Cox has been a life-long Democrat and has taken an active interest 
in the deliberations of his party. Some idea of the popularity which he has 
throughout the county is shown by the fact that he was elected in Novem- 
ber, 1912, as commissioner of Hendricks county, despite the fact that Hen- 
dricks is a strong Republican county. In this important office he has shown 
that he has that admirable judgment and good common sense which is the 
making of a good and efficient pul^lic official. j\Ir. Cox is a man of genial 
personality and numbers his friends in every corner of the county. He is a 
man who has the welfare of his county at heart and is using his best efforts 
to improve his home county in every possible way. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 4II 

A. EMMETT BLY. 

It is one of the beauties of our government that it acknowledges no 
hereditary rank or title, no patent of nobility save that of nature's, leaving 
every man to establish his own rank by becoming the artificer of his own 
fortune. Places of honor and trust, rank and preferment thus happily placed 
before every individual, high or low, rich or poor, to be striven for by all, 
but earned alone by perseverance and sterling worth, are most always sure 
to be filled with deserving men, or at least by those possessing the energy and 
talent essential to success in contests where public position is the prize. A. 
Emmett Bly, the subject of this review, afi:ords a conspicuous example of the 
successful, self-made American, who is not only eminently deserving of the 
confidence reposed in him by his fellow citizens, but also possesses the neces- 
sary energy and talent that fits him to discharge worthily the duties of the 
responsible place with which he has been honored by the people of his county. 
A man of vigorous mentality and strong mental fiber, he finds those qualities 
the chief factor in the carving out of a career that has been above the sus- 
picion of reproach and of honor to the county which he so ably and acceptably 
serves. 

A. Emmett Bly, one of the most successful business men of Plainfield, 
Indiana, was born three miles southeast of Danville, Indiana, on November 
24, 1878, the son of Joseph and Lydia (Morgan) Bly, who were both natives 
of this county also. His father is a farmer and lives north of the depot in 
the same house where Judge John V. Hadley, the editor of this work, was 
born. He was a huckster by trade for eighteen years, but within the last few 
years he has been operating a farm, which is owned jointly by himself and 
son, A. E. Bly. The grandfather of Mr. Bly was Joseph Bly, a native of 
Crab Orchard, Kentucky, who came to this county wdien a young man and 
settled at North Belleville, where he followed the occupation of a farmer all 
his life. He was married to Mary Powers, and to them were born several 
children, Joshua. Joseph, William, John, Jane, Lizzie and one child who died 
in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Bly reared a very interesting family of 
eight children: Alta, the wife of Frank Stout, of Indianapolis; John Dott, 
who died November 29, 1905, at Phoenix, Arizona, had been associated with 
A. Emmett in the dry goods business for some years. They started in busi- 
ness together in August, 1896. The two brothers had been agents for the 
Indianapolis Nezus, Sun and Journal, and their mercantile success was 
formed upon the pennies earned and saved in the sale of newspapers. They 



412 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

I 

won the state prize from the InchanapuHs News for the largest iiuniljer of 
sales. John Dott Bly was born Jnly 22, 1877, and was cut off in early man- 
hood when he was giving great promise of a brilliant career. He was super- 
intendent of the Sunday school, very active in the fraternal order of the 
Knights of Pythias, and an exceptionally bright young man. The third child 
of Joseph Bly is A. Emmett. the immediate subject of this sketch; Daisy, the 
wife of Robert Copeland, of Plainfield; Ralph, assistant cashier of the Fir.^t 
National Bank of Plainfield; Robert, who is employed in the Boys' Reform 
School at Plainfield; Okal, wife of Frank Waggoner, and an infant child 
who died at the age of three weeks. 

A. Emmett Bly was born on his father's farm and educated in the public 
schools of his home county and attended the Central Academy at Plainfield. 
At an early age he engaged in the mercantile business, purchasing the small 
stock of dry goods owned by W. E. Phillips, when he was only seventeen 
years of age. A few days later his brother, John Dott, eighteen years old, 
who had been mentioned before, came into the business as an equal partner 
and the store was a money maker from the beginning. The two youthful 
merchants seemed to have the innate ability which characterizes successful 
business men and their success was assured from the start. No more popular 
young men ever started in business in Plainfield than the two Bly brothers, 
and their business transactions were such as to v/in for them the confidence 
of their rapidly increasing patronage. Mr. Bly now carries a large and well 
selected stock, of goods, valued at fifteen thousand dollars, and enjoys his 
full share of the patronage of the people of his vicinity in the lines which 
he handles. He is splendidly qualified in every respect for a business career, 
and bv his unfailing courtesy and untiring and persistent industry, system- 
atic and honorable methods, he has gained the confidence and respect of all 
with whom he has come in contact. 

A. Emmett Bly was married on June 25, IQ05, to Louise Juanita Lowry, 
the daughter of Orville and Frances (Utterback) Lowry, and to this happy 
union there have been born two children. Karl Dott, born February 26, 19 10, 
and Melba, born March 4. 19 12. The family residence is one of the most 
attractive and comfortable modern homes in Plainfield, and here the many 
friends of the family are delighted to gather, where they are always assured 
of a hearty welcome and an enjoyable hour. Mrs. Bly is a woman of many 
gracious qualities of character and possesses intellectual ability of a high 
order. She is an ideal wife and mother, and her husband attributes no small 
amount of his success to the comfort and counsel of his wife. 



\ 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. ' 4I3 

Mr. Ely's remarkable success in business has brought him into close 
connection with the financial life of his community. He is now a director in 
the Citizens State Bank of Plainfield, has landed interests in Texas, Georgia, 
and in his home county, where he and his father own one hundred and four 
acres. His interest in education and the intellectual advancement of his 
community is shown in the fact of his live interest in the public library of his 
town. He is now. a member of the library l)oard. Officially, he is connected 
with the township advisory board of Guilford township as its secretary. His 
father was trustee of this township in 1904, and made an excellent record in 
that important office. When he took charge of the office, the township was in 
debt, and he not only repaired the roads of the township and made many im- 
provements, but cleared off the indebtedness of the township and left a 
large surplus at the end of his term of office. ]\Ir. Bly is a meml^er of the 
Friends church and contributes generously of his means to its support. Fra- 
ternally, he is a member of the Improved Order of Red Men, Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows and Free and Accepted Masons. His political party 
has recognized his influence and ability by selecting him as a delegate to the 
state convention, and he has for many years been a delegate to the Republican 
conventions, both county and state. 

The success of A. Emmett Bly is a real story and needs no flattering 
statements to show wdiat may be accomplished by a genuine lover of good, 
honest work. His rise from a country newsboy to a leading merchant and 
substantial citizen while yet a young man is a story of fact rarely equaled 
even in this day of phenomenal successes, and yet through it all he has main- 
tained that sympathy with his fellow citizens which endears him to everyone 
with whom he comes in contact. Personally, he is a pleasant gentleman and 
is not only held in high esteem for his abilities, but for his public-spirited 
nature, his wholesome private and social life and his position is secure as one 
of Hendricks countv's most influential citizens. 



ERNEST COOPER, M. D. 

There is no class to whom greater gratitude is due from the world at 
large than the self-sacrificing, sympathetic, noble-minded men whose life 
work is the alleviation of suffering and the ministering of comfort to the 
aftiicted, to the end that the span of human life may be lengthened and a 



414 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

great degree of satisfaction enjoyed during the remainder of their earthly 
sojourn. There is no standard Ijy which their 1)eneficent inlhience can be 
measured; their helpfuhiess is hmited only by the extent of their knowledge 
and skill, while their power goes hand in hand with the \von(lerful laws of 
nature that spring from the very source of life itself. Some one has aptly 
said, "He serves God best who serves humanity most." Among the physi- 
cians and surgeons of Hendricks count}', Indiana, who have risen to eminence 
in their chosen field of endeavor is the subject of this review, who.-e career 
has been that of a broad-minded, conscientious worker in the sphere to which 
his life and energies have been devoted and whose profound knowledge of 
his profession has won for him a leading place among the most distinguished 
medical men of his day and generation in the city of his. residence. 

Dr. Ernest Cooper, thfe son of William B. and Rachel ( Ritter) Cooper, 
was born in Guilford township, Hendricks county, Indiana, June 8, 1870. 
His father was a native of North Carolina and his mother of Hendricks 
county, Indiana. William Cooper came to Hendricks county in 1850, when 
about eighteen years of age, driving through in a wagon. He was a farmer 
all his life and continued that occupation until his death, which occurred in 
1893, ^t the age of sixty-one, his wife having preceded him in death in 1879, 
at the age of thirty-eight. To Mr. and Mrs. William Cooper were born 
twelve children, four of whom are living: Mrs. Etta Wolfe, of Clear- 
water, Florida; G. A., of Oregon; Everett, of Escondido, California, and 
Ernest. 

Ernest Cooper was reared on the home farm and enjoyed all the pleas- 
ures which fall to the lot of the ordinary farmer's boy. He secured his 
elementary education in the district schools of his township, and at the age 
of nineteen entered the Central Academy at Plainfield, this county, working 
his way through the four-years high school course. After his graduation, 
in 1893, he taught school in his home township for two years and worked 
on his uncle's farm in the summer seasons. While he was attending the 
school at Plainfield he slept in a doctor's office and here he got his first taste 
of medical life. Although he had but little money, he was determined to 
secure a medical education, and with that end in view he entered the Indiana 
Medical School at Indianapolis in 1895 ^"*^1 worked his way through, finish- 
ing with the class of 1898. Upon the outbreak of the Spanish- American war 
he enlisted as a private in the hospital corps of the regular army and served 
during the summer and fall of 1898. Within the first four weeks of his 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 415 

service he was promoted to acting hospital steward and mustered out as such. 
Returning to his home county,, he began the active practice of medicine at 
Plainfield as a partner of Doctor Carter and continued this partnership for 
the next seven years, since which time he has practiced alone. He has built 
up gradually a large and lucrative practice, and in 191 1 he built his present 
modernly equipped office brick building, which is fully equipped for general 
practice and all kinds of surgical work. At the present time he is in charge 
of the Boys' Reform School at Plainfield, and has had this important position 
for the past five years. He has served four years on the pension board, 
several years as health officer, and is also surgeon for the Terre Haute. In- 
dianapolis & Eastern Traction Company at Plainfield. 

Doctor Cooper was married on June 12. 1900, to Eleanor Hanna, daugh- 
ter of Hon. John Hanna, ex-congressman and one of the notable men of 
Indiana. Doctor and Mrs. Cooper are the parents of two daughters, Portia 
E., aged ten years, and Lucia V., aged seven. 

Doctor Cooper is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, the 
Knights of Pythias and Improved Order of Red Men. and takes a very active 
interest in lodge circles, for the past seven years having been treasurer of the 
]\Iasonic lodge at Plainfield. He is a member of the Hendricks County, 
State and American medical associations. He and his wife hold affiliations 
with the Friends church and contribute generously of their means to its sup- 
port. He has been a life-long Republican in politics, but, in accordance with 
the usual custom of physicians, he does not take an active part in politicav 
affairs, deeming it better to devote all of his time and attention to the medical 
practice. 

Doctor Cooper has won his success only through hard work and diligent 
study. His life history is the history of a man who has struggled through 
his boyhood and manhood to attain the position which he holds today. He 
met with a very unfortunate mishap on July 22, 1910, when an accidental 
discharge of a shotgun so crippled his left leg that it was necessary to 
amputate it. The fortitude which he showed upon this occasion is character- 
istic of the indomitable courage of the man and stamped him as a man of 
unusual character. His whole life has been one of struggle, and now that he 
has reached a place where his practice is sufficiently lucrative to enable him 
to enjoy life he takes a supreme pleasure in helping those less fortunate. He 
and his good wife are the centers of a happy home and dispense hospitality to 
a large circle of friends and acquaintances. 



-^"^' HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



JACOB E. O'NEAL. 



I he office of biography is not to give voice to a man's modest estimate 
of himself and his accompHshments, bnt rather to leave upon the record the 
verdict establishing his character by the consensus of opinion on the part of 
his neighbors and fellow citizens. In touching upon the life history of the 
subject of this sketch the writer aims to avoid fulsome encomium and extra- 
vagant praise; yet he desires to hold up for consideration those facts which 
have shown the distinction of a true, useful and honorable life-a life 
characterized by perseverance, energy, broad charity and well-detined pur- 
pose. To do this will be but to reiterate the dictum pronounced upon the 
man by the people who have known him long and well. 

Jacob E. O'Neal, the son of William H. and Elizabeth (Keller) O'Neal 
was born in Putnam county, Indiana, January i8. 1863. He died August 
27, 1907, and she lives with her children. William O'Neal was not fortu- 
nate enough to receive very much schooling, but was given a practical educa- 
tion at home. He hired out by the month until gro^^■n. then was married 
and at the beginning of the Civil War he enlisted in Company K One Hun- 
dred Porty-eighth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and served until 
the close of the war. Prior to the war he married Elizabeth Keller the 
daughter of John Keller, and to this union there were born nine children- 
Naomi, wife of Mahlon Sechman; Florence, wife of John Robinson- Lor- 
enzo, who married Sarah Knetzer; Mary, wife of Phillip Masten • Robert- 
William S. married Ida Bryant; Julia, wife of Oliver P. Phillips- Nora B ' 
wife of Dayton Kersey, and Jacob E., the immediate subject of this sketch' 
Jacob E. O'Neal received his elementary education in the district schools 
of Putnam and Hendricks counties and after leaving school worked on the 
farm with his father until his marriage. He then rented a farm and by 
strict management and' sound judgment, he was sufficicntlv successful to 
enable him to purchase his present farm of one hundred eight acres in 1900 
As a farmer he has made a pronounced success and is considered one of the 
successful stock raisers of the county. 

Mr. O'Neal was married to Anna J. Harlan, the daughter of [esse E 
and Jemima (Robinson^ Harlan, and to their marriage ha^-^ been born three 
children, Claude E., Frank H. and Sadie F. Claude, who is a professor in 
the Ohio Wesleyan University at Delaware, Ohio, married Mabel Hostetter 
Frank is still under the parental roof. Sadie married Schuyler Arnold and 
will live in Stilesville. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 4^7 

Jesse Harlan, father of Mrs. O'lNeal, was born in North Carolina and 
his wife, Jemima Robinson, was a native of Kentucky, and they were the par- 
ents of twelve children: William R., who died in infancy; Benjamin F., 
who married Ella Kendall; Levi, who married Flora Pike; Henry, who mar- 
ried Ella Lisby; Lydia, who became the wife of Willett Klein; Sarah, wife 
of Frank Snodgrass; Mary, who became the wife of Smith Harlan; Charles, 
who married Lora Wise; Anna, wife of Jacob E. O'Neal; Clara, wife of 
Marion Grimes; Retta, wife of Virgil Rollings; Liila, unmarried. Mr. Har- 
lan lives in Clay township; his wife died on July 30, 1895. 

The paternal grandparents of Mr. O'Neal had a family of seven chil- 
dren, James, George, William H. (the father of Mr. O'Neal), Henry, La- 
vina,' Elizabeth and Emmeline. Mr. O'Neal's maternal grandparents reared 
nine'children, John, Steven, Jesse, Enoch, James, Elizabeth, Melinda, Marion 

and Rachel. 

Mr. O'Neal is a member of the Progressive party, having allied himself 
with that new organization in the fall of 1912. He is a member of the In- 
dependent Order of Odd Fellows and the Modern Woodmen of America, 
while, religiously, he and his wife are consistent members of the Methodist 
Episcopal church at Coatesville, Indiana, and are actively interested in the 
various organizations of that church. xMr. O'Neal has'always taken an active 
interest in political life and has been assessor of his home township for four 
years and county treasurer for two years, performing the important duties 
of these offices in a very satisfactory manner. In his public career, as well 
as in his private life, he has been a man who conducted all of his business in 
a straightforward and upright manner, thereby winning the esteem of his 
fellow citizens. 



SANDERS SMITH. 

The following is a sketch of a plain, honest man of affairs, who, by 
correct living and a strict regard for the interests of his patrons, has made 
his influence felt in Plainfield and won for himself distinctive prestige in the 
professional circles of that city. He would be the last man to sit for romance 
or become the subject of fancy sketches, nevertheless his life presents much 
that is interesting and valuable and may be studied with profit by the young, 
whose careers are yet to be achieved. He is one of those whose integrity 
and strength of character must force them into an admirable notoriety, which 

(27) 



4i8 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



their modesty ^e^•er seeks, who command the respect of their contemporaries 
and their posterity and leave the impress of their individuahty deeply stamped 
upon the community. ' ' 

Sanders Smith, the restaurant man of Plainfield, and one of the most 
pi,bhc-si„r,ted citizens of that little city, was born February i8. i8s4 near 
Hall, Morgan county, Indiana. His parents were Henry B.' and Jane '(Car- 
der) Smith, h,s father being a natiye of ICentucky and his mother of Indiana 
Henry Sm.th was one of the best farmers of IMorgan county, and spent all of 
his life tilling the soil in that county, his death occurring there May r^ 
1910. Henry Smith was a Democrat of the old school and was a man of 
more than ordinary education and strength of character. He and his wife 
were loyal members of the Christian church and great students of the Bible 
His wife was one of the best informed Bible students in the county where 
they hyed and was a daughter of John Carder, who was probably the best 
Bible student m this section of the state. Mr. and Mrs. Henry Smith were 
the parents of nine children, fiye of whom are Hying: Sanders, the immediate 
stibject of this sketch; Haryey M., of Mooresyille, Indiana; Stephen, of New 
Or cans; Henry K., of Hall, Morgan county, this state; Rena Smith, of 
Indianapolis. 

Sanders Smith was born and reared on his father's farm and received 
all his education upon the farm and in the district schools of his home neigh- 
borhood. He continued working on the home farm until he was twenty- 
our 3^ears of age, at times working for farmers in the vicinitv of his home 
for a few months at a time. He also clerked in a store at Hall. Indiana for 
about two years, and in 1881 he came to Plainfield and established a' res- 
taurant and confectionery store. In 1886 he concluded he could better his 
fortunes by removing to Danville, and the next four years of his life were 
spent m that city, where he operated a restaurant and confectionery store 
on the east side of the public square. However, in 1890, he decided to re- 
turn to Plainfield, and he has continued in the restaurant and confectionery 
business m that place since. He now has a building of his own and has one of 
the most complete and fully equipped restaurants and soda fountains in the 
state. He freezes his own cream by electricity and has installed all the 
latest devices for the convenience of his patrons, having an equipment which 
will compare favorably with any town of the size of Plainfield in the state 
Mr. Smith was married March 25, 1875, to Olive L. Seaton. daughter 
of George W. Seaton, of Morgan county, this state, and to this union there 
has been born one daughter, Iva E. Seaman, the wife of Dr. H L Seaman 



^ HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 4^9 

who is now living with her father. Mrs. Seaman has one daughter, OHve 

Emma. 

Mr. Smith takes an active interest in pohtics and is a Democrat of the 
Bryan-Wilson stamp, believing thoroughly in the motto of having the people 
rule. lie attended the Denver convention in 1908, and also the inaugura- 
tion of President Wilson, in March, 1913- His party has tried to prevail 
upon him to accept office, at different times, but he has always refused. He 
is well posted on all public questions of the day and has a knowledge of all 
the important issues, which makes him a very entertaining conversationalist. 
He is one of the mo.^t influential factors in the councils of his party in his 
section of the county, and his opinion is always sought during the cam- 
paigns. Fraternallv, he is a member of the Knights of Pythias, and at 
present is master of exchequer of Plainfield Lodge No. 50. He is also a 
member of Uniform Rank No. 33, of Plainfield. He has been active in 
the Knights of Pythias work for many years and helped to build the present 
castle hall in his' home town. Mr. Smith is one of the most progressive 
civic workers in the town and helped to get the present town incorporated and 
was one of the men who led the fight for water works and electric lights, side- 
walks and other improvements. During his whole life in Plainfield he has 
tried to make the town a better place to live in and how well he has suc- 
ceeded is very apparent to the casual visitor. Such men as Mr. Smith are a 
blessing to the community in which they live, and the study of the career 
of such a man should be of help to the young men who are to become- the 
future citizens of Plainfield and the surrounding community. Mr. Smith 
is a genial man in his relations with his fellow citizens, and because of his 
high character has won the esteem of a large circle of friends and acquain- 
tances which he has scattered thoroughout the county. 



WILLIAM W. SAWYER. 

It is proper to judge of the success of a man's life by the estimation 
in which he is held by his fellow citizens. They see him at his work, in his 
family circle, in church, hear his views on public questions, observe the 
operation of his code of morals, witness how he conducts himself in all the 
relations of society and civilization and are, therefore, competent to judge 
of his merits and demerits. After a long course of years of such daily 
observation, it would be out of the question for his neighbors not to know 



4-0 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

of his worth, for, as has been said, "actions speak louder than words " In this 
connection it is not too much to say that the immediate subject of this sketch 
has passed a life of all unusual honor, that he has been industrious and has 
the confidence of all who have the pleasure of his acquaintance 

Wilham W. Sawyer, a life-long farmer, now living in comfortable re- 
tirement m Clayton, Hendricks countty, Indiana, was born on October .. 
1846, near Hazelwood, this county, the son of John and Nancv (Martin)' 
bawyer. John Sawyer was a native of Randolph county. North Carolina 
born m 1794, and died in this county in i86q at the age of seventv-five 
years. He received his early education in the schools of his native state 
coming to Indiana soon after his marriage. He first settled in Marion countv 
and entered land from the government in different places in the state and 
some time m the thirties he came to this county, where he passed the remain- 
der of his life. He was twice married. By his first wife he became the 
father of six children, namely: Iredel, Eli, Irena, Nathan, Elizabeth and 

; "' .; ""^ '^^'''''' ^^^^ P^''^^ ^'°"^ ^his life. His second wife was 
Nancy Martin, also a native of North Carolina and the daughter of John 
B. and Jane (Cravens) Martin. She died in the winter of 1892, on January 
2ist, at the age of seventy-seven years. She was the mother of eight chil- 
dren, but one of whom besides the subject is living, Araminta. Those de- 
ceased are Eliza, Mary, Rhoda, Theodore, James C, and Daniel C, who died 
at the front during the Civil War. John Sawyer followed the vocation of 
farming all his life and was an honored man in the community After the 
Republican party came into existence he was a strong advocate 'of its princi- 
ples, but never took an active part in the administration of its affairs He was 
a faithful member of the Methodist Episcopal church and a man of in- 
riuence in his locality. 

William W. Sawyer passed the years of his early youth on the home- 
stead, m this county, and at the opening of hostilities, at the beginning of 
the Civil War, fired with love for his country, he enlisted in August 1862 
for three years in Company G, Ninety-ninth Regiment Indiana Volunteer 
Infantry. He served in the Army of the Tennessee under General Sherman 
and also, under the leadership of that great man, he made the famous march 
to the sea. He was captured en route at Statesboro, Georgia, on December 
4, 1864, and sent to the rebel prison, at Florence, South Carolina At the 
time of his capture he was detailed as a mounted scout and as such was 
taken by the enemy. On March i, 1865, he was paroled and remained as a 
paroled prisoner until the close of the war, when he was mustered out of 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 421 

service and received his honorable discharge, at Camp Chase, Ohio, on June 
:8 i86; On August 13. 1864, during the siege of Atlanta, he was wound- 
ed' in the leg and received an injury in the head at the battle of Jonesboro, 
on September i, 1864. However, he did not go to a hosp.tal with either 
of these injuries. After the close of the war, Mr. Sawyer returned to h,s 
native county, where he engaged in farming, which line of work he fol- 
lowed all his active life, living in the vicinity of Hazelwood, Liberty town- 
ship this countv. He has been highly successful and has owned land m both 
Hendricks and' Morgan counties. In 1913 he disposed of his farmnig in- 
terests and, with his family, moved to Clayton, there to spend his remammg 
days in well deserved rest from the active duties of lite. ^ . ^ ^, . 

On April 16 1867. Mr. Sawyer was united in marriage with Martha 
York a daughter of Nathan and Rebecca (Folgeman) York, born on Decem- 
ber 1849. Nathan York was a native of North Carolina and came to this 
state and perhaps this county, with his parents when but a young man. His 
father Barnev York, entered land from the government, in Liberty township 
and there it was that Nathan York grew to manhood. He was born m North 
Carolina in 1820, and died on his farm, in this county, on August 30. 1896, 
at the age of seventy-six years. In this county he met and married Rebecca 
Fogleman. also a native of North Carolina, who had come with her parents 
to this state, making the journey overland in a cart. They sett ed first m 
Morgan countv. When her grandfather, Barney York, arrived in this countv 
he found himself possessed of but ten cents, not considering his most valuab 
asset, in the way of unlimited energy and ambition. He succeeded so vvell 
in his efforts that he became possessed of considerable land and at his 
deaA left forty acres to each of his children. Rebecca (Fogleman) York 
who was born in 1833. died in this county in 1884. She was ^e -other of 
twelve children, three of whom have passed away, being Francs Mariom 
Laura and Oscar. Those remaining besides Martha, wife of the immed.te 
subject of this sketch, are: Amanda (Mrs. Richardson) Asbury. Sylves er 
Lucinda Ella (Mrs. Kwitt), Mary Alice (Mrs. Rhodes), Louisa (Mrs. 
Brantlinger). Dayton and Myrtle. „f„li„„,,. 

Mr and Mrs. Sawyer are the parents of twelve children, as follows. 
Jerome T., born in 1868. died in 1872; Ida Belle, born in 1870; Dayton M 
born in 182 ; Minta A., born in 1874 and died the same year Walter, born in 
187 • Arlington, born in 1878 and died in 1881 : Charles, born ,n 1 881 and 
ed ihe sam'-e year: Mary Myrtle, born in 1882 and died m -897. Oscar, born 
and died the same year; Vonnie O., born ,n 1886 and died in 1888, 



in i»85 



422 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



Arthur, born ,„ 1888, and Viola, born in 1891. Ida Belle, the eldest daughter 
becante the w.fe of Robert M. Kwitt, a far„,er living close to Hazellod; 
th,s eounty. They are the parents of si.x children, one of whom. Edward 
d.ed n, ,„fancy. The o.ies remaining are Mattie, Mamie, Mary, Dewey and 
1-ernando. Matt.e, their eldest, daughter, is the wife of John McDade and 
res.des ,n Clayton. She is the n,other of four children, Dessie, Sylvan 
Jewe and Hobart. Mamie, second daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Robert m' 
Kw, , ,s t e w.fe of Walter Rushton, a farmer living in Putnam co nty 
She also . the mother of four children, Lawrence, Ethel, Dorothv and Walter 
Glenn. Mary the th.rd daughter, is the wife of Edgar York and resides in 
R™rt.°"' '"''^™P°"^- They have two children,%Iary Etta and Jd," 

Dayton, eldest living son of the subject, married Annie Duncan and 
hves at Hazelwood, th.s cotmty. They are the parents of seven chiWren two 

HuberT' S . ■"' n '"' S'T"' '"" "'''"' ^"^>'- ^he others are Maude, 
Hubert, S ylv.a. Dons and Lowell. Sylvia is the wife of Archie Johnson and 
hves near Hall, in Morgan county. She has one child. Walter, another son of 
the subject, „,arr,ed Grace Lewis and lives at Martinsville, Indiana. They 
are he parents of si.. living children and have lost a babe which died itr 
ntan y. fhcr chddren are Archie, Martha, William, Howard, Merrill and 
Lloyd. Arthur, youngest son of the st.bject, resides in the capital c a"d 
.s connected wtth the Indianapolis Life Insurance Companv, with offi es ^ 
he Board o Trade building. Viola, the youngest daughter,' became the wie 

Of onTchd^r RitX.l.'™^"'" ""■"^'"" '"'^ -""^^- ^'- '^ '■- --''- 
Both M,. and Mrs. Sawyer are consistent members of the Missionarv 
Bapt,s church at Clayton, and have reared their family „, strict a'" d" 
- the tenets of that fa.th. The family is one of the most highl : steeld 
.n the contntun.ty, and the ho„,e radiates kindliness and good che^r ven to the 
passtng stranger. Mr. Sawyer's fraternal affiliation is Tvith the tin - "ono red 

w^ rci:" '"''T "'T'' ''''"'' '" ■™'"'-^^'>' ■" "- " S 

ht aiv'h i n '" T? '"^-' "' "■""" '^^ "'^ ^^«^'y "«--ted. Po- 
I. cally, he ,. a Dentocrat and has e>er had an acti,e interest in local politics 

diyXsr \r" ^''''^'1 'T" " '""'• '' ■*--»" i-onai!::''';:- 

w h the ■, , "■' "'"'''•■ "'" °"'"'^''^ indications of a heart in tune 

K . S ::"7y :: """"' ^--'^ "' "^^ ^'••'•- '-"^ -^ '-™ -^^ abroad 
takes keen .lehght ,n prontoting any cause leaving, at its ultin.ate obiect 



HENDRICKS COUNTY,, INDIANA. 4^3 

the uplift of mankind in any way whatsoever. Mr S-vyer has the tm- 
aualified admiration and esteem of all who know hmt, which .s a fitt.ng 
nte of .h,ch he ,s eminently worthy. To li.-e for years ,„ one com 
numitv and steadily rise in public estu.at.on '"d.cates that he reap.en 
of thi; ..ratifying regard has so lived as to be truly worthy o it. I mean 
: life th principles of which have been the highest along al hnes it means 
hifulness and charity in the broadest sense for friends and neighbors. 

REV. ROBERT NATHAN HARVEY. 

No estimate of the immense amount of good that comes f™m a long 
active and useful life like that of Rev. Robert Nathan Harvey, the we 
known minister of Clayton, Hendricks county, Indiana, can be n-"- - * 
is far-reaching in its effects and will continue through -.-"g genej^^t ^ns 
hke the -light that shines more and more unto the perfect day. tew . ves 
ha e been so unselfish, so pregnated with good deeds and so »"trolle by 
anLatiable desire to be kind and beneficial to his fellow men, but notw.th- 
tai^^ -bounded influence he wields in moulding puUic op.mon^nd 

of he hi^h tributes of praise freely accorded him by a vast horde of admir- 
ers wh eve he is known, he is entirely unassuming and unpretentious, con- 
::.; in thlThought that he is cominuous.y putting forth his best efforts m 
following the footsteps of the lowly Nazarene.^ 

Rev Robert Nathan Harvey, a retired minister of the Baptist churcn, 
born k, Wayne county, Indiana, April 26, 1831, and ,s now living in 

Virginia, July 4. 1791- ^ ^^^y Noland's fork, in Wayne 



4^4 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

^seconcl premuiins on linsey. which was woven by herself The nlW.^t 

^om men to Daniille, where he was elected to the Le-islatnre TTp , o 
member of both the House of Representatives and the^ Se ' anf s vela! 
yea s be ore the war was elected treasurer of state on the Wh g t.cket \ 

h.m that God never made an honester man than he." Robert Harvev Sr 

:™S : X8n h-°" -f '"" .^^'"^^^ ''^ «^^' -«'^<^ '" :836^!is de ah oc: 
curnng m 1871, his wife surviving him one year 

Rev Robert Nathan Harvey grew up on his father's home farm and' 
ear y ,,fe learned the blacksmith's trade at Danville, after which he ejected 
a blacksmith shop at Clayton before the town was laid out. He was a Qv 

":rwaXa"d:dTr r r °"' ^-'^ ^°"^''' ^ '-™ ■- -" -- 

M Har ■*" '°' ^""^ ^"™''"^ '° ^° "= housekeeping with, 

who ? •' r' "''""^ September 26, 1852, to Sarah Ann Shirlev 

who was born at Gosport, Indiana, October 20, 18,3. the daughter of W n' 
lam and iVIary rWorrell) Shirlev H»r f,n, j """o^te"^ «' VVUI- 

-«., J • r.^ . .»»oirea^ :^nlrley. Her father and mother were both 
reared in Kentucky and married there. Her father followed the trade of a 
a.Ior until late m life. When Mrs. Harvey was seven vea oTage e 
parents moved to Belleville, in this county, where her father gave up h 
trade as a tailor and engaged in farming near Clayton. After his ch fdren 
grew up he went into the dry goods business at Pecksburg, and was eng g d 
m that line of business until his death. After Mr. and Mrs. Harvey were 
married they lived on the farm and he farmed and operated a blacks nth 
shop which occupations he continued to follow for the ne.xt twelve yea s It 
which time he bought forty acres of land near the village of Pecksburg ;nd 
on this farm lived until December 28, 1912. at which time his house a^d all 
Its contents were destroyed by fire, causing a loss of three thousand dollars 
with only an insurance of eight hundred dollars. At that time he bought his 
present home in Clayton. *^ 

Mr. Harvey joined the Baptist church at Clayton in i86r, at a time 
when the church at Amo was being organized. He and eight others became 
the charter members of this church in 1866 at Amo, and now there are only 
three of the charter members of this church left, Mr. Harvey and his wife 
and Melissa Justus. On July 29, 1869. Mr. Harvey was ordained to the 
ministry of the Baptist church and was stationed at New Bethel Putnam 
county, Indiana. From that time for the next thirty-five years' he was 
never without a charge and during his entire pastorate was in char..e of four 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 4^5 

teen of the twenty-one churches in the White Lick Association, spending 
eleven years as pastor of the Lawrence Baptist church and eight years at 
Brookfield. For twenty-three consecutive years he was moderator of the 
White Lick Baptist Association and for three years was moderator of the 
Indianapolis Baptist Association. 

Reverend and Mrs. Harvey have been the parents of three children, the 
youngest, Frank Lincoln, dying at the age of eight months, the other two 
children being George A., of Clayton, and Dr. W. D. Harvey, who is presi- 
dent of the Indianapolis Regalia Company. Doctor Harvey was a success- 
ful physician before he went into his present business, and is equally suc- 
cessful in his new profession. Doctor Harvey married Cecelia Hadley, who 
died leaving one child, and he afterwards married Lydia Theal. George 
Harvey, the oldest son of Rev. R. N. and Mrs. Harvey, was for many years a 
dealer'in threshing machines and engines at St. Louis, Missouri. He now 
lives in Clayton and has a fine farm two and one-half miles southwest of 
that town. He was married in 1875 to Lucy M. West, the daughter of 
Columbus and Tabitha (Staley) West. Columbus West was born one mile 
south of Pecksburg, this county, and was the son of Abraham and Sma 
(Hadley) West. Tabitha Staley was born in Morgan county, Indiana, the 
daughter of Eli and Mary fTripps) Staley, who came to Morgan county, 
Indiana, from North Carolina in pioneer times. George Harvey and wife 
have one child, Herbert S., born in 1877, who married Fannie Harkrider, 
and they have one son, Raymond. 

Mr. and Mrs. Harvey have been married over sixty-three years. All 
the friends of their vouth have passed away and gone. He is the last one of 
the family living. During the course of his life of nearly four score years 
in this state there has never been raised the breath of suspicion against his 
name He has taken a prominent part in public life during his whole career 
and has been county commissioner and for years was justice of the peace of 
Clay township No case which he tried was ever appealed, showing that he 
used good judgment in his decisions. He married hundreds and hundreds of 
couples and only five of them were ever divorced. On his eighty-second 
birthday he was remembered by people from all over the United States, and 
one hundred and sixty-three cards of congratulation from his church mem- 
bers showing the high esteem and affection in which he is regarded by his 
manv friends. It is interesting to note that in all of the churches m which 
he has officiated there has never been any quarrel in the church, a fact which 
speaks well for his tact and good judgment in handling his congregations. 



426 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Rev. R. N. Harvey has always been interested as a public citizen in 
politics and cast his first vote in 1S52 for Scott, and has never missed voting 
for a Republican candidate for President since that time and only missed two 
elections in the township. He attends all primaries and local conventions and, 
all in all, he is a man who has devoted his high talent to worthy purpose and 
when he "wraps the drapery of his couch about him and lies down to pleasant 
dreams," the community will have lost one of its best loved characters. 



JESSE S. OGDEN. 



It is eminently fitting" to judge of the success of a man's life by the es- 
timation in which he is held by his fellow citizens. They see him at his work, 
in his family circle, in church, hear his views on public questions, observe 
the operation of his code of morals, witness how he conducts himself in all 
the relations of society and civilization, and are therefore competent to 
judge of his merits and demerits. After a long course of years of such 
daily observation it would be out of the question for his neighbors not to 
know of his worth, for it has been truly said that "actions speak louder than 
words." It is safe to say that no man in Hendricks county wielded so much 
influence for a man of his age as did the late Jesse S. Ogden, who died in 
that county in 1877, at the early age of thirty-seven years. He was a man 
among men and "the elements so mixed in him that the whole w^orld might 
stand up and say. This was a man." 

Jesse S. Ogden, the son of Mr. and Airs. John Ogden, was born in 
West Virginia, near Winchester, in 1839, and died February 10, 1877, j^^^t 
at the time when he was at the height of his success and popularity. The 
Ogden family trace their lineage back to colonial times and the members 
of his family occupied many places of trust and responsibility in the history 
of early Virginia. John Odgen and his family came to Indiana and settled in 
Hendricks county early in its history. Jesse S. Ogden was educated in the 
public schools of Danville, the Danville Academy and the Northwestern Law 
School at Indianapolis. His education was interrupted by the opening of 
the Civil War and he laid aside his books for the musket and answered the 
call of Governor Morton for troops. He enlisted in Company H, Seventh 
Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and served until he was wounded at 
the battle of Winchester, Virginia. After he was mustered out of the service 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 4-^7 

on account of disability he returned to Hendricks county, Indiana, where he 
continued to reside until his death. He completed his legal education in 
Indianapolis and then formed a partnership with Judge John V^Hadley. 
Immediately after the close of the war he was elected recorder of Hendricks 
county and later prosecuting attorney of his home county. He was always 
interested in the principles of the Republican party and was honored by 
beino- elected to the House of Representatives in 1874. He had a brilliant 
career before him and would undoubtedly have occupied a much higher place 
in the political and official life of Indiana had he not died at such an early 
ao-e He was a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, and m his church 
affiliations was identified with the Methodist Episcopal church. His widow 
is still living and makes her home with her son, Rev. Horace G. Ogden, at 
Jamestown, New York. 

' Tesse S Ogden was married to Mary A. Carter, of Danville, and to this 
union were born three children, Rev. Horace G., D. D., of Jamestown. New 
York who is now pastor of the first Methodist Episcopal church of that place ; 
Mrs. Adella L. Duvall, of Delaware, Ohio, who has won renown as a soprano 
"singer and lames U.. a successful lawyer of Indianapolis. 

^ That lesse S Ogden was a remarkable man in more ways than one, is 
indicated in the striking document which he wrote a short time before his 
death When he was told that he did not have much longer to live, he ac- 
ceDted the inevitable decree like a martyr, and, looking calmly into the face 
0/ death he composed a creed for the guidance of his little children, whom 
he was about to leave. In all the range of literature and in all the annals of 
rhilanthropv there mav not be found a more comprehensive summary or a 
stronger code of morals than he composed under such strange conditions, 
and {I is safe to sav that this document, teeming with a father's love, has 
fuffilled the mission for which the fond father wrote it. In view of the 
exquisite beautv of language and the lofty purity of thought which are em- 
bodied in this 'remarkable document, and believing that future generations 
mav profit by the words, it is reproduced here just as it was given to his 
children on January 18, 1877, less than one month before his death. 
"My Dear Children : 

' "If I were to undertake to tell vou how much I love you and how so- 
licitous I am for vour welfare and happiness in this life and m the life to 
e vou could not understand me, for you are too young to comprehend 
It was mv sincere wish to live long enough to superintend your educa- 



come, vou cou 
it. 



428 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

tion and see }()U fairly started on the perilous journey of life. This coveted 
pleasure will be denied me. You will never know what it is to have a father 
to assist and guide you. You will be compelled to struggle unaided and alone, 
against the many vicissitudes and hardships of this life without light or coun- 
sel from me. I can not leave you any great patrimony and even if I could 
it might prove to you a curse rather than a blessing. Since I leave you 
nothing more substantial, I thought it prudent to cull out of my own limited 
wisdom and experience some plain and simple maxims which, if practiced, I 
am sure w'ill make you estimable citizens of society and prepare you for that 
eternity whose shadow ever encompasses your footsteps. 

"First of all, revere God and keep his commandments. 

"Unite with some church w^iose tenets accord nearest wdth your con- 
science, and attend faithfully to your religious duties. 

"Avoid all pomp and bigotry in religion. All true religion is embodied 
in one word — Charity : charity that embraces God wnth one arm and all hu- 
manity with the other. All else is counterfeit. 

"Now let me call your attention more particularly to some plain rules 
of conduct in your relations to society, and for your own personal guidance. 

"Above all things be truthful. And if you are truthful, then you w^ill 
be honest — and these two constitute the cardinal \artues of a good life. 

"Again, be industrious. Labor assiduously, and complete w'ith thor- 
oughness whatever you undertake. Indolence is the mother of poverty, un- 
happiness and crime. 

"Be independent and self-reliant. Learn some independent trade or pro- 
fession where you can receive the rewards of your own industry. 

"Practice economy, without being miserly. Give according to your 
means to worthy objects of charity — and be sure they are worthy. 

"Pay as you go. I repeat it, pay as you go ! This is the true secret of all 
substantial success. The percentage of your creditor will make you a bank- 
rupt if you run in debt. 

"If possible, secure for yourself a competency, without striving to become 
rich. Get no wealth at the expense of conscience. If fortune should favor 
you, in your prosperity do not forget the poor and needy. 

"Be courteous. Politeness is the highw^ay to popularity and station. 

"Seek the society of the pure and learned; avoid the low and vulgar. 
Your position and standing in society depend on the observance of this rule. 

"Read good books, such as have received the commendation of compe- 
tent critics. Do not stufif vourselves on the current trash of the dav — it is 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 4^*) 

as reprehensible as gluttony. Time is the best critic. The books that survive 
his touch deserve to be studied. 

-Be temperate in all things. Touch not the intoxicating bowl. It is full 
of vice, violence, misery and poverty. I beg you touch it not. 

"Govern your temper. It is a fiery steed, and, unless put under severe 
discipline, will' carry you into all manner of difficulties. Coolness is the bal- 
last of a wise head. 

"Be cleanly and dress neatly, without ornamentation. The sloven car- 
ries with him the highest evidence of his thriftlessness and ill breeding, while 
on the other hand the brainless fop is equally abhorrent. 

"Avoid all affectation and dissimulation. Be natural and sincere. Have 
the courage to say 'no' where your honor or integrity might suffer. . 

"Economize your time; do not procrastinate. Remember ■ that you can 
not recall a single moment of your lives. There are no pauses in the steady, 
ceaseless revolutions of the ponderous wheel that hurries you on to the end. 
Make sure, then, of each moment, and out of it extract something for your 
moral, intellectual or financial progress. Recreate your minds with manual 
labor, your bodies with study. 

"Remain at home at night. Let me entreat you not to mingle with the 
vile gossiping crowd on the street corners or in some den of iniquity. It is 
in such company that bad habits are contracted and moral depravity has its 

origin. 

"Obey your dear mother in all things. She understands your rights 
and duties, and will make no unreasonable demands of you. Strive to make 
her life pleasant and happy. 

"Last of all, revere your country and obey her laws. Cherish her insti- 
tutions of freedom and the rights of man. If these should be threatened, 
sacrifice your lives rather than see them perish. 

"I might multiply indefinitely the minor duties of life; but I hope by the 
observance of these maxims, you will be actuated by higher motives, a high- 
er faith, a broader philanthropy and a sublimer patriotism than myself. God 
knows how sincerely I yearn for such a consummation. If I only knew you 
would grow up into' perfect manhood and womanhood I would die content. 

"On each recurring anniversary of my death, I desire you to read this 
and resolve that you will observe these simple precepts with renewed fidelity. 
As you read them, may they be to you as a message direct from my home in 
that celestial city where I expect to take up my everlasting abode. 



430 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

''May God bless and preserve you from all harm and sa^•e you finally in 
hea\-en, is my parting benediction. Farewell. 

"Your much afflicted, but affectionate father, 

«p c; T 1 • TT "J- ^- Ogden. 

1. S.-I desire Horace to keep in his possession this original manu- 
script, and that he furnish James and Adella each with a copy when they 
grow up and separate from each other.— J. S. O. 

"January i8, 1877." 



D. MONROE REYNOLDS, M. D. 

It is not always easy to discover and define the hidden forces that 
move a life of ceaseless activity and large professional success; little more 
can be done than to note their manifestation in the career of the individual 
under consideration. In view of this fact, the life of the successful phvsician 
and pubhc-spirited man of affairs whose name appears above affords a striking 
example of well-defined purpose, with the ability to make that purpose sub- 
serve not only his own ends but the good of his fellowmen as well. Doctor 
Reynolds holds distinctive prestige in a calling which requires for its basis 
sound mentality and intellectual discipline of a high order, supplemented by 
the rigid protessional training and thorough masterv of technical knowledge 
with the skill to apply the same, without which one cannot hope to rise above 
mediocrit.y m ministering to human ills. In his chosen field of endeavor Doc- 
tor Reynolds has achieved a notable success and an eminent standing among 
the medical men of his county. In addition to his creditable career in one of 
the most useful and exacting of professions, he has also proved an honor- 
abe member of the body politic, rising in the confidence and esteem of the 
public, and in every relation of life he has never fallen below the dignity of 
true manhood nor in any way resorted to methods that have invited criticism 
or censure. 

D. Monroe Reynolds was born at Georgetown, Illinois, on August -8 
1877, the son of William P. and Angeline (Holliday) Reynolds, the former 
of whom was born at Bloomingdale, Parke countv. this state, in 1844, and was 
the son of Mahlon and ( Reubottom) Re^•nolds. who came to Indi- 
ana from North Carolina and passed the remainder of their lives in Parke 
county. William P. Reynolds grew to manhood on his father's farm in 
i arke county, and later went to Vermillion county, Illinois, where he pur- 
chased a farm and also worked at the carpenter's trade. It was there he 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 43 ^ 

met and married Angeline Holliday, who was a native of that comity and a 
daughter of Wihiam and Ehzabeth (Hay worth) HoUiday. Her parents 
came to Ilhnois from North CaroHna. Wilham P. Reynolds and wife remain- 
ed in Ilhnois for a number of years and about the year 1904 they returned 
to Indiana and located near Mooresville, where they now reside. 

D. Monroe Reynolds passed his boyhood days on the homestead in 
Illinois, attending the township schools, where he received his elementary 
education, and later attending the Vermillion Academy, at Vermihion Grove, 
that state. Having decided to make the practice of medicine his life work, 
he matriculated in the Indiana Medical College, at Indianapolis, from which 
seat of learning he was graduated in the year 1900. For one year after 
graduation he was an interne at Saint Vincent's Hospital, in Indianapolis, 
and after completing his course there he located in Clayton, Hendricks 
county, Indiana, where he has since resided in the practice of his chosen pro- 
fession. In 1902 Doctor Reynolds was united in marriage with Joanna 
Buchanan, born at Huntington, this state, a daughter of Samuel Buchanan 
and wife. She passed her girlhood in her native town, attending its schools 
and, being a young woman of intelligence with a broad outlook on life, de- 
cided to enter the ranks of trained nurses. She was received for training in ' 
Saint Vincent's Hospital, Indianapolis, and it was there she and Doctor 
Reynolds first met. Doctor Reynolds and wife have one son, Russell Perry, 
a remarkably interesting child of four years. In addition to his professional 
duties. Doctor Reynolds gives attention to the operation of a farm, com- 
prising two hundred acres, which he owns near the town of Mooresville, 
this state. Up-to-date methods of agriculture are followed in handling the 
business of this farm. Doctor Reynolds is also interested in the People's 
Bank, at Clayton, which he assisted in organizing in the fall of 191 2. Doc- 
tor Reynolds' career, since locating in Clayton, has not only been successful 
from a scientific standpoint, but he has gained for himself the sincere regard 
and confidence of the entire community. A high order of skill in his calhng, 
a broad-minded sympathy with the sick and suffering and an earnest desire 
to help others, have combined to make him unusually successful and he 
is held in the highest esteem by his brother physicians because of his genuine 
worth. Genial and cheerful, he carries sunshine and comfort into every 
sick-room which he enters, winning at once the confidence and co-operation 
of his patients. Indeed, he is a welcome visitor in any company which he 
chooses to enter, for he possesses to an eminent degree those qualities which 
commend a person to the good will of others. 



^^2 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Fraternally, Doctor Reynolds is affiliated with the Free and Accepted 
Masons, having attained the Royal Arch degree in the York Rite bodies, has 
the thirty-second or Scottish Rite degree and is a Noble of the Mystic Shrine. 
Doctor Reynolds was reared in the Quaker faith, his father being a member 
of the Old-Style church and his mother of the progressive branch, but in 1913 
Doctor Reynolds identified himself with the Presbyterian church, of which 
Mrs. Reynolds also is a member, 1)otb taking an active part in the affairs of the 
church and doing all within their power to forward its work. Doctor Reynolds 
is still a young man and his useful life, as one of the world's workers, has been 
one of devotion to his calling, with an earnest desire to assist in the better- 
ment of his community along moral, educational and material lines as well. 
The opening vista of years holds much of promise for him and, through him, 
for the community honored by his residence. 



WILLIAM COSNER. 



Among the men who have been material factors in the development of 
Hendricks county, there is no one who occupied a more prominent position 
than the late William Cosner. In every community there are some men who 
are known for their upright lives, strong common sense and moral worth 
rather than for their wealth or political standing, and among such men was 
Mr. Cosner, who was not only a progressive man of affairs, successful in 
business pursuits, but a man of modest and unassuming demeanor, a fine 
type of the reliable, self-made American, a friend to the poor, charitable to 
the faults of his neighbors and ready to unite with them in every good work 
and active in the support of laudable purposes. He was a man who in every 
respect merited the high esteem in which he was universally held, for he was 
a man of public spirit, intellectual attainment and exemplary character. 

William Cosner was born in Wayne county, Indiana, August 25, 1835, 
and died in Clay township, Hendricks county, Indiana, April 3, 19 12. His 
parents were Anthony and Catherine (Phillips) Cosner, both of whom were 
born and reared in North Carolina. After their marriage they moved from 
that state to Indiana, settling in Wayne county, where they lived for five 
years, at the expiration of which time they moved to Hendricks county and 
located near Amo. Anthony Cosner here entered government land and 
started to carve out his fortune from the virgin wilderness. He built a log 



> 
o 

CO 




HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 433 

cabin, cleared the land and started to make a comfortable living for his large 
family. To Anthony and Catherine Cosner were born nine children : John, 
who married Eliza \\'hicker and, after her death, Louise Roily; Mahlan mar- 
mied first, Catherine Boswell, second, Susan Weavel, and after her death, 
Elizabeth Bloom; Samuel, who married Nancy Walls; Lucinda, who became 
the wife of Moses Stanley , and after his death married Austin Williams; 
Sarah married William Page and, after his death, William Wilhite; Ann 
and Elizabeth died in infancy. The paternal grandparents of William Cos- 
ner reared a family of seven children, Anthony, father of the subject of this 
sketch, Mary, Hannah, Lovey Peggy, Elizabeth, William and Sarah. An- 
thony Cosner died in 1889, while his wife died in 1873. 

William Cosner received his education, which was very limited indeed, 
in the schools of his home township. While still a small boy he started to 
work on his father's farm, where he continued to labor until his father's 
death, in 1889. However, before that date he built a home of his own and 
his father made his home with him. 

William Cosner married Sarah E. Hine, the daughter of Winfield and 
Catherine (Reed) Hine. They were married during the Civil War, in April, 
1862, and to this union were born two children, Elma Leota and Alda 
Ketu'ra. Elma Leota married Phineas Purcell, and has two children, Roy 
and Flora; the latter lives with her grandmother; Roy married Elizabeth 
Miller and has three children. Max, Elma L. and Dorothy. Alda married 
Walter Moon and has three children, Wilbur, Adna and Larue. 

Mrs. Cosner's parents came from North Carolina to this state and first 
located near Coatesville in 1852. After remaining there for a short time 
they moved to Franklin township, this county, where they lived until their 
death. They were the parents of nine children: Sarah, the wife of Mr. 
Cosner; Mary, wife of Scott Askren; Loren married Nettie Wilcox; Leroy, 
deceased in infancy; Emma, wife of Albert Masten; Lucinda, wife of Milton 
Patterson; Jane, wife of James Hollowell; Laura and Roxey, who are un- 
married, live in Danville. The mother of these children died January 17, 
1899, and the father two days later. Mr. Cosner's maternal grandparents 
reared a family of eight children, Joseph, Winfield, Eli, Nathaniel, Louis, 
Roginia, Nancy and Jane. 

Mr. Cosner was a life-long Republican and cast his first vote for John 
C. Fremont in 1856. He never asked his party for public office, being con- 
tent to serve as a private in the ranks, doing what he did in the local caucuses 
(28) 



434 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

and primaries. His religious faith was that of the Baptists and throughout 
his long life he was a strong believer in the teachings of that denomination 
and lived according to these doctrines. His life was characterized by its 
Christian beauty and character and it should be a model for coming genera- 
tions in Hendricks county. 



JOHN HENRY HALL. 



Clearly defined purpose and consecutive effort in the affairs of life will 
inevitably result in the attaining of a due measure of success, but in fol- 
lowing out the career of one who has attained success by his own efforts 
there comes into view the intrinsic individuality which makes such accom- 
plishment possible, and thus there is granted an objective incentive and in- 
spiration, while at the same time there is enkindled a feeling of respect and 
admiration. The qualities which have made Mr. Hall one of the prominent 
and successful men of Clayton, have also brought him the esteem of his fel- 
low townsmen, for his career has been one of well directed energy, strong 
determination and honorable methods. 

John Henry Hall, who is living in comfortable retirement from the active 
duties of life, in his commodious home in Clayton, was born in 1837, at 
Zanesville, Ohio, the son of Greeneberry and Lydia (Thomas) Hall. He 
was a posthumous child, his father's death having occurred before his birth 
and he had the misfortune to also lose his mother before he w^as three years 
old. At his mother's death he was taken into the home of his maternal 
grandfather, Joseph M. Thomas, who was born and reared in Reading county, 
Pennsylvania. When the subject w-as about three and one-half years old, his 
grandfather moved to McConnellsville, Morgan county, Ohio, where he fol- 
lowed his trade of carpenter and millwright. There they remained until 
the subject was sixteen years of age, when the family removed to Clayton, 
where the years intervening until the outbreak of the Civil War were passed 
in quiet pursuits. Fired with a love of country, late in August, 1861, Mr. 
Hall enlisted in Company B, Seventh Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, 
and was with that regiment all through the three years service. In the winter 
of 1862 he was for several weeks confined in Windmill Hospital, and in 
June, 1864. at the crossing of the North Anna river, in Virginia, he was 
wounded while starting a skirmish line, running onto a rebel enforced skir- 
mish line. He engaged in many of the leading battles of the war, among them 
being Green Brier, in West Virginia. Kernstown (generally called the battle 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 435 

of Winchester), and Port Republic. He was then placed in the Army of the 
Potomac and with that division was in the engagements at Fredericksburg, 
Cedar Mountain, the second battle of Bull Run, under General Pope, South 
Mountain and the battle of Antietam. He also was at Gettysburg and after 
that spent the winter in Virginia and on May 5th their division was brought 
into the battle of the Wilderness, that seven days of terrific fighting. He 
was also at Petersburg when the "Crater" was blown up and distinctly saw 
the explosion, being comparatively near at the time. In the latter part of 
September, 1864, he was mustered out of the service and came back to his 
home in Clayton, having come through his severe experiences in an excep- 
tional manner. While still a youth and prior to .his service in the arm)-, 
he had learned the painter's trade and had worked at it for about three years. 
After his return home from the front, he engaged in the sewing machine 
business for a couple of years and then became connected with a Philadelphia 
publishing house, for whom he was on the road for about twenty-five years. 
They were publishers of maps, and his work took him all over the eastern, 
central and middle western states, preparing new maps and making correc- 
tions in ones then existing. After he severed his connection with his firm, on 
account of failing health, he settled down at Clayton again, where his home 
and family had always been. 

Mr. Hall's political sympathies were with the Republican party and 
after quitting the road he began taking an active interest in local politics and 
was elected township trustee, which position he held for five years, the term 
having been extended by a Democratic Legislature, although he was of the 
opposition party. Then for six years thereafter he served as president of 
the county council and otherwise served his party. He was engaged in the 
coal business for four or five years and about the year 1908 retired from 
active business. Mr. Hall is one of the most highly esteemed citizens^ of 
Clayton, a broad-minded man, well posted on current events and with a far- 
reaching influence for good in his community. 

In October, 1867, Mr. Hall was united in marriage with Angeline Sher- 
man, born in Fall Creek township, Hamilton county, this state, near the town 
of Fortville. She is the daughter of Alonzo D. and Sarah (Hammond) 
Sherman and grew to womanhood on the place where she was born, but was 
living with her uncle, George Hammond, at the time she met Mr. Hall, lo 
their union was born one daughter, Ora May, who passed from this life m 
1891 at the age of twenty-two years. Both Mr. and Mrs. Hall are devout 
members of the Christian church and give liberally toward the support of the 



436 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

local organization. Mr. Hall's fraternal affiliations are with the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows and the Grand Army of the Republic. Mr. Hall is 
widel}^ known as one of the most sagacious business men of his community 
and as a citizen of much public spirit, always interested in the common good. 
He has many friends and is a pleasant, sociable gentleman. He has always 
stood for progressive ideas, wholesome living and patriotism, and although 
his life has been without incident of a marked unusual nature, it has shown 
that steady, consecutive endeavor, coupled with honesty of purpose, will ac- 
complish large results in the end. 



ROBERT A. EDMONDSON. 

It IS the progressive, wide-awake man of aftairs that makes the real 
history of a community and his inriuence as a potential factor of the body 
politic is difficult to estimate. The examples such men furnish of patient 
purpose and steadfast integrity strongly illustrate what is in the power of 
each to accomplish and there is always a full measure of sati.- faction in ad- 
verting, even in a casual way, to their achievements in advancing the interests 
of their fellowmen and in giving strength and solidity to the institutions 
W'hich make so much for the prosperity of a community. Such a man is the 
W'Orthy subject of this sketch, and as such it is proper that a review of his 
career be accorded a place among the representative citizens of the town 
and county in which he resides. Additional interest attaches to his career 
owing to the fact that his entire life has been passed within the bounds of 
this county. 

Robert A. Edmondson was born on December 18, 1863, about two mile- 
south of Clayton, the son of Benjamin G. Edmondson. When he was six or 
seven years old they moved to within a short distance south of Clayton, and 
there he grew to manhood, attending" the schools in Clayton, where he re- 
ceived his elementary education, and later studying at the Central Normal 
College. After completing his studies at Danville, he taught school for two 
terms. On April 22, 1883, he was united in marriage with Delia Appleby, 
born in Owen county, this state, the daughter of John and Rachael ( Reitzel) 
Appleby, both of whom were reared in Hendricks county and were descend- 
ants of some of the earliest pioneer families of this locality. John Appleby 
was a farmer and lived for a time in Owen and Greene counties, later return- 
ing to this county about the year 1880. For one year he lived on the John 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 437 

V. Haclley farm, also resided near Belleville and later near Plainfield and 
finally purchased a farm near Avon, where he passed the remainder of his 
life, his death occurring there, where his widow continues to live. 

After marriage, Mr. Edmondson went to farming for himself, spending 
about twelve years in Morgan county, where he purchased one hundred acres 
of land to begin with and has since added fifty-four more. He also owns 
more land adjoining it on this side of the county line. In the fall of 1895 
he purchased a farm of thirty-six acres about a half mile south of Clayton, 
near where his boyhood days were passed, and there he erected a comfortable 
home right in the midst of a beautiful walnut grove, where he has since 
resided. Later he added eighty-Hve more acres to this tract and in all is 
possessed of some three hundred and fifty acres of land, all in an excellent 
state of cultivation, each acre attesting to the ability of the owner and mark- 
ing him as one of the most up-to-date agriculturists of the county. In ad- 
dition to his farming interests. ]\Ir. Edmondson finds time to devote to other 
lines and since 1888 has been a notary public and has served several times as 
executor or administrator of estates. During the summer of 1912 he took 
an active part in organizing the People's Bank and Trust Company of Clay- 
ton, which institution he has served as president since its organization. This 
company opened for business October 16, 1912. Clement Earl Kelley having 
been largely instrumental in bringing it into existence. The officers of the 
company are R. A. Edmondson, president; Amos L. Mitchell, vice-president; 
C. E. Kelley, cashier. The directors are R. A. Edmondson, Amos L. 
Mitchell. William G. Peck. W. F. Martin. Charles B. Worrell and Charles M. 
West. The company does a regular banking business and also acts as ad- 
ministrator, executor or trustee, sells insurance and deals in real estate, etc. 
The capital stock is twenty-five thousand dollars, fully paid up. and the total 
assets in September, 19 13, were nearly ninety thousand dollars. It owns 
its own building, built expressly for its occupancy and being a thoroughly 
modern business block. 

Politically. Mr. Edmondson is a Democrat and active in local politics. 
In 1900 he was elected trustee of Liberty township, this county, which office 
he held a little over four years, his term expiring January i. 1905. He was 
the first Democrat to be elected trustee of that township, receiving a majority 
of sixty-five votes, w^hen previously it had been going to the opposition by a 
majority of something near two hundred. Mr. Edmondson. therefore, was 
entitled to feel some elation over his victory, which was a distinct tribute to 
the popularity which he so richly deserves. 



43S 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



To Mr. and Mrs. Edmond.soi, have been born five sons, the eldest 
Clarence \ ,rg.l, who married Mary Hopkins, residing two miles sonti of 
Ua.vton on the national road, where he ,s engaged in farming. He h wo 
chd< ren, Walter and Esther. John Benjamin married Pearl R cha dson 
and hves on the sottthern line of this connty, where he owns a ho e f hi 
own and ,s engaged .„ farming. He gradnated from the agricnltnra d 
partnent of Purdue University in 191 1, and spent one vear u^de he t te" 
geolog,st „i sod survey work in Owen and Morgan counties and for one e 
was ass.sta„t edUor of tl,e Farn,.,r Guide, a periodical published at Hunt 
mgton. th.s state. Ralph W. married Osie Scott and lives on tl stl^ 's" 
farm .„ the northern edge of Morgan county, which far.n he oper , 

connecon w.th h.s father. He is the father of one son, I^owe 1 r1 e 
Samnel ,s attending Purdue University and will graduate in the sprmg of o ' 
from the agr.cultural department, and Roy is also taking th agricultural 
course at the same university. ^Bncuitural 

at Clltn^'to "h-f;. '''™"''°" ^" """'"" °^ "- P-sbyterian church 
at Clayton, to wh.ch they contribute liberally of their means, having a sin- 
cere desire m seemg the rapid advancement of that societ;. Fraternally 
Mr Edmondson is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fe low^' 
n the workings of which order he takes a quiet interest. He is a man of 

caus of h,s genuine worth and high character, he has long enjoyed a splendid 
eputation in the con^unity honored by his residence. Se gives his suppo 
to all movements for the advancement of his fellow citizens and is today 
mtmbered among the representative men of Hendricks county 



COLUMBUS F. EDMONSON. 



of thlgln eman \ ' '" '" """"""^ ' ''^ '^^'^ '" '^e career 

cki ens of H , 1.°" "'"" '"""'" *''^ '"'''^^'P''' °"^ °' *^ b-^' known 
S V haf :ff V°""'^'' '"^'■^-' -"» '^y ■■-l-t^y- perseverance and 
ntegritv has won for himself an env.able position in the financial standin.. of 

" work d h : '°''^ '''■*"' " P"'^"^ ^^*"™"°" ^-1 -»-"!■ 

which farreJ^lerrh™';™'" '" """"^ '"^'""'"^^ '° '^'^ "--"' ^i'"«»". 

Him by fX: „ : '"°" "'°"'^' °' ''' '''"' •"^' '^ ''"'>■ --''-' 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 439 

Columbus F. Edmonson is a native of Hendricks county, having been 
born in 1854 about two miles south of Clayton, the son of Benjamhi G. 
Edmonson and wife, the sketch of whose lives appear at length elsewhere m 
this volume. The subject remained on the home farm until the time of his 
marnag-c on September 9, 187^ to Amy Thrift. She was born near Mount 
Ayer, Ringgold county, Iowa, the daughter of James and ^arah jane 
(Brown) Thrift. Both her parents were born and reared in North Carolina, 
being "natives of Randolph county, and were married before coming to the 
HoJ'sier state, where, in 1856, they located in Hendricks county in Eel River 
township, near North Salem. James Thrift was a son of David and Lydia 
(Parsons) Thrift, and his wife, Sarah Jane Brown, was the daughter of 
William and Susan Brown, all of whom were natives of North Carolina and 
came to this county at the same time. The Browns located near Avon and 
the thrifts m Eel River township. James Thrift and wife moved to Iowa 
after a short residence here, but returned because of his mother's failing 
health \fter his mother's death, they returned to Iowa, where he purchased 
a farm and passed the remainder of his life, his death occurring m 1899. 
His widow returned to this county and made her home with the subject and 
wife until the time of her death, March 13, I9i3- Mrs. Edmonson remained 
with her parents in Iowa until the time of her marriage to the subject, after 
which event they began farming for themselves on a farm owned by Mr 
Edmonson's father, which was located about two and one-half miles south 
of Clayton There they remained until 1879, when they bought the Mitchell 
farm of one hundred and seven acres on the National road, where they re- 
mained until 1905. at which time they moved to Clayton, where they have 
since resided Mr. Edmonson has been signally successful m his endeavors 
and has acquired considerable real estate. He has in all about two hundred 
and eighty acres in his homestead south of Clayton, he owns two hundred and 
sixty acres in Henry county near New Castle and is also interested m the 
Coldwater Land Company, which corporation owns cotton lands m the 
Mississippi deha. In addition to his general farming, he for many .-ears 
bought and shipped live stock and became widely known m this connection. 
He is now actively interested m lumber yards located at Amo and Ben Davis, 

this county. , 

To Mr and Mrs. Edmonson have been born four children. Alva, the 
eldest married Florence Hanna, of Plainfield, daughter of Congressman 
Hanna Thev reside in Chicago, where he is associated with the White 
Steamer Automobile Company as a salesman. He received his early educa- 
tion in the schools of Liberty township, later graduating from Plainfield 



440 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Academy. He then entered the mechanical engineering department of Pur- 
due University, having been grachiated therefrom in 1904, when he immedi- 
ately became associated with the automobile company above mentioned. He 
is the father of one little daughter, Cornelia. Blanche, eldest daughter of 
Mr. Edmonson, attended Milliken University at Decatur, Illinois, after 
graduating from Plainfield Academy. She is the wife of Walter Thompson 
and lives on a farm on the National road. She is the mother of two children, 
Elizabeth and Luanna. Frank, who was graduated from Purdue University 
in 1909, is also engaged in farming, being located about two and one-half 
miles southwest of Clayton. He married Ollie Swearingen, of Mooresville. 
Ruth, the youngest daughter, is at present attending high school at Clayton. 
The family is one of the most highly esteemed of the community, being 
known as people of broad minds and laudable ambitions, and many are the 
influences for good which radiate from their home circle. The family is 
identified with the Presbyterian church, of which both Mr. and Mrs. Edmon- 
son are members and to the support of which they contribute generously. 
Mr. Edmonson's fraternal affiliation is with the Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows, of which he has been a member for some time. He is aligned with 
the Democratic party and takes a keen interest in the administration of thaf 
party's affairs. While not desiring office for himself, he is known to wield 
a definite influence at the polls and is, therefore, reckoned with by those seek- 
ing the honor of public service. Mr. Edmonson has always been regarded as 
a man of high principles, honest in every respect and broad-minded. A man 
of good character, kindness of heart and ever willing to aid in any way any 
cause for the betterment of the community and the public with whom he has 
to deal, he is held in high favor and the utmost respect by all who know him. 



JOHN H. BUNTEN, JR. 

That the plenitude of satiety is seldom attained in the affairs of life is 
to be considered a most beneficial deprivation, for where ambition is satisfied 
and every ultimate end realized, if such be possible, apathy must follow. 
Effort would cease, accomplishment be prostrate, and creative talent waste 
its energies in inactivity. The men who have pushed forward the wheels 
of progress have been those to whom satisfaction lies ever in the future, who 
have labored continuously, always finding in each transition stage an incen- 
tive for further effort. Mr. Bunten is one whose well-directed efforts have 




JOHN H. BUNTEN, JR. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 44 1 

gained for him a position of desirable prominence in the agricultural circles 
of Hendricks county, and his energy and enterprise have been crowned by a 
gratifying degree of success. 

John H. Bunten, Jr., one of the most prominent stock breeders in cen- 
tral Indiana, was born September 2, 1869, in the township where he has re- 
sided all his life. His parents were John and Rebecca (Call) Bunten, his 
father being a native of Kentucky, coming to this county with his parents 
when he was five years of age. John Bunten, Sr., was born in 1818, and 
when his parents came to Marion townhip, this county, in 1823, his father, 
William Bunten, entered six hundred and forty acres of land from the gov- 
ernment, where John H. now lives. John Bunten, Sr., married Rebecca 
Call, the daughter of John and Julia Call, who also were natives of Kentuckv. 
They came to this township early in its history and entered a large tract of 
land here. John Bunten, Sr.. died in 1895, and his wife passed away at the 
age of eighty. They reared a family of twelve children, eight of whom are 
still living: Mrs. Anna M. Wright; Laura B. ; Elmer, deceased; Oliver M.. 
deceased; John H., the immediate subject of this sketch; Nora M., deceased; 
Thomas O. ; Edgar, deceased; Alice R. ; Obediah; Roscoe G., and one who 
died in infancy. Laura B. Bunten is a successful breeder of pure-bred Buff 
Rock and Buff Orpington chickens. 

John H. Bunten has never married and now lives with his sister, Laura 
B., on the old homestead farm. He received his common school education 
in the district schools of Hendricks county, and has spent his entire life on 
the farm where he was born. He has made a fine reputation as a breeder of 
fine live stock and makes a specialty of Poland-China hogs, handling only the 
best and purest breeds. He also handles Shropshire sheep and keeps his herd 
to a high state of efficiency. For several years he also kept pedigreed Short- 
horn cattle, but recently disposed of his herd and now deals only in hogs and 
sheep. He has yearly sales for his stock, at which there are large crowds of 
buyers present and high prices are paid for his stock. He advertises his sales 
widely and thus brings together prominent buyers from all parts of the state, 
who are anxious to secure some of his well bred stock. Mr. Bunten is con- 
sidered an expert judge of hogs and is a member of the National Association 
of Poland-China Breeders. On his farm of two hundred acres he raises con- 
siderable grain and other crops, but his main attention is devoted to live stock. 

Mr. Bunten is Republican in politics, but has never taken an active inter- 
est in the affairs of his party. He has never felt inclined to indulge in the 
various political fights which feature campaigns, preferring to devote his at- 



442 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

tention to his live stock and other interests. He is well known throughout 
the county and is regarded everywhere as a man of his word and one whose 
integrity is never questioned in the slightest degree. He is a quiet, unassum- 
ing and genial man and has many warm personal friends throughout the 
county. His sister, who lives with him, is also interested in the success of 
her brother and has contributed in no small measure to his success. They 
are very hospitable people and are highly esteemed by every one in their 
neighborhood. 



AMOS L. MITCHELL. 



Although not an old man in years, the gentleman whose life record is 
herein outlined has in no uncertain manner stamped his individuality upon the 
locality where he resides, being an excellent representative of that ty])e 
of the much-heralded rVmerican business man- — the type that does things. 
He is one of the most progressive agriculturists of the county, conducting 
his business along lines approved by science and good usage. He believes 
that for a greater amount of money invested in a business and properly man- 
aged, one earns a greater per cent, of profit, and, therefore, all facilities for the 
conduct of his business are the most up-to-date obtainable. There are indi- 
viduals in every community who, by reason of pronounced ability and force 
of character, rise above the heads of the masses and command the unbounded 
esteem of their fellow men. Characterized by perseverance and a directing 
spirit, two virtues that never fail, such men always make their presence felt 
and the vigor of their strong personality serves as a stimulus and incentive to 
the young and rising generation. To this energetic and enterprising class 
the subject of this review very properly belongs. 

Amos L. Mitchell was born on October 21, 1871, in Liberty township, 
this county, the son of William C. and Elizabeth (Wills) Mitchell. William 
Mitchell was a native of Tennessee and when five years old was brought to 
this state by his parents, Samuel and Polly Mitchell. The family settled in 
Liberty township, where Samuel engaged in farming. He was also a minister 
of the Presbyterian church and preached in Hendricks and Carroll counties. 
He later moved to Carroll county and there his death occurred as a result of 
injuries received in a runaway accident. His son William, father of the 
immediate subject of this sketch, passed the days of his boyhood and youth 
in Liberty township and all his life was engaged in farming. During the 
dark days of the sixties he gave three years of service to the Union. He 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 443 

enlisted as lieutenant of Company C, Seventieth Regiment Indiana \^olunteer 
Infantry, and a short time after enlistment was made captain. His regiment 
was part of the division known as the Army of the Potomac and went all 
through the various engagements of the Cumberland campaign, later going 
with General Sherman on the famous march to the sea. He received his 
honorable discharge from the army in July, 1865, and immediately returned 
to his home in this count}', where he gathered up the threads of life where 
he had laid them down to answer the nation's call. He owned a farm of two 
hundred and forty acres and there lived out the remaining number of his days. 
In this farm the subject of this sketch now owns a half interest. William 
Mitchell's death occurred in 1897. ^^^ ^^^s sixty-third year. He was the father 
of seven children. Those, beside the subject and a little son Alva, who died 
in infancy, are: Mary L. (Mrs. Candy) ; Charles, deceased; Nanny Garrison 
(Mrs. Reid), who is now a widow; Howard, and Belle, who married Vinson 
S. Hamlin and lives west of Clayton. In his early manhood Mr. Mitchell 
had united with the ancient order of Freemasonry, in which order he kept 
his membership until a short time before his death. He was also a member 
of the Grand Army of the Republic and his religious affiliation was with the 
Presbyterian church. Politically, he was a Democrat, but had never taken 
an active interest in politics. 

Amos L. Mitchell spent his early days on his father's farm, learning 
from him the secrets of successful husbandry and in his boyhood days 
attended the district schools of the township, where he received his elementary 
education. Later in life he took the three-year philosophical course at De- 
Pauw University, Greencastle, this state. He chose farming as his life's voca- 
tion and all his efforts have been expended along this and kindred lines. In 
addition to his home farm, located a short distance north of Clayton and com- 
prising some hundred and twenty acres, he also owns three hundred acres of 
cypress timbered land in Obion county, western Tennessee. About one hun- 
dred and sixty acres of this is now under cultivation, the entire acreage being 
turned to the production of cotton. His home farm is in perfect condition, 
showing the master mind, and all buildings, etc., are in the best possible con- 
dition and thoroughly modern. On this farm is what is considered the best 
barn in the county. In it is every possible convenience, including two large 
silos and a modern machine milker. Mr. Mitchell operates a fine Holstein 
dairy, having sixty-six head of partly pure bred stock. On January i, 1914, 
he purchased at Toledo, Ohio, a number of these line bred cattle, which came 
to him from one of the famous homes of the breed in Canada. In addition 



444 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

to his dairy herd, he is also a breeder and has some fine specimens of this 
excellent breed to dispose of. Mr. Mitchell is progressive in every sense of 
the word and this, coupled with his untiring energy and high ambition, marks 
him as a business man of unusual ability. He is a man of genial tempera- 
ment and a most delightful companion. He is a friend to all and gladly ex- 
tends a helping hand wherever he sees an opportunity to do good. Any cause 
having as its object the promotion of the moral, social or educational life of 
the community finds in him an earnest advocate and, needless to add, such 
a man stands high in public estimation, while by a large number of close 
friends he is held in warm regard. 

On October 2, 1896, Mr. Mitchell was united in marriage with IVlyrtle 
Rains, daughter of Hiram and Sarah (Owen) Rains. She is the grand- 
daughter of Hiram Rains and is his adopted daughter, having been adopted 
by him at the age of nine months. To Mr. and Mrs. Mitchell have been born 
two sons, Owen and Richard. Both Mr. and Mrs. Mitchell are earnest and 
sincere members of the Presbyterian church at Clayton and give liberally 
toward the support of the local society. Mr. Mitchell is a Democrat, but 
does not find much time to devote to his party, having his hands well filled 
with his large and g^rowing business. 



MARK MILLS SHORT. 



Among the best-known citizens of Hendricks county is the gentleman 
whose name introduces this sketch. A member of one of the old and highly 
esteemed families of this part of the state, he is a public-spirited man of af- 
fairs and. while still young in years, has stamped the impress of his indi- 
viduality upon the community and added luster to the honorable name which 
he bears. Always scrupulously honest in all his relations with his fellow 
men, he has left no stone unturned whereby he might benefit his own con- 
dition as well as that of his neighbors and friends and consequently he has 
long ago won the favor of a great number of people of this county. Among 
the progressive young business men of this section, there is none who stand 
higher than he and, in view of what he has already accomplished, it is safe 
to predict that his kindly influence will grow through the coming years, bring- 
ing still greater good to the locality honored by his residence. 

Mark M. Short was born on May 22. 1879, in Center township, this 
county, the family at that time residing just north of Clayton, and is the son 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 445 

of Benjamin Franklin and Lydia Jane (Coble) Short, the former of whom 
first saw the light of day on June 24, 1834, at Centerville, Wayne county, 
this state, and the latter being a native of this county, born on March 31, 
1843. on what used to be known as the Coble farm, located about three miles 
east of Stilesville. Benjamin Franklin Short was the third in a family of 
seven children, and, when a small child, was taken by his parents to Missouri, 
where for a vear they resided near Hannibal. However, being dissatisfied 
with the conditions of that region, they returned to the Hoosier state, this 
time taking up their residence in Hendricks county, where the family since 
resided. He attended the early subscription schools of his day, pursuing his 
search after knowledge alone and unaided through many difficult subjects, 
and when a young man he labored as an instructor of youth, beginning first 
at Hall, Morgan county, in 1857 and later teaching at the Lake David, 
Christie and Spicklemire school houses, all being old educational landmarks. 
He later gave his attention to farming, at which he passed the majority of his 
years, and a few years before his death he retired from active labor on the 
farm and became a citizen of Clayton, there to pass his remaining years 
in quietude. He passed from this life on October 2, 1908, being in the sev- 
enty-fifth year of his age. He was twice married, his first wife being Mary 
A. Stephenson, to whom he was united on September 2, 1858. She died at 
Danville on February 15, 1872, their union being without issue. On April 
13, 1873, Mr. Short was again united in marriage, his bride being Lydia 
J. Coble. To their union were born three children, namely: Otis William, 
now living in Missouri; Charlees. Young, who lives in Coatesville. this county, 
and the immediate subject of this sketch. At his death these three sons and 
the widow survived. For many years he had been a devout member of the 
Christian church and ordered his life in accordance with the tenets of that 
faith. 

Lydia Jane Coble, mother of the subject, was the youngest in a family 
of ten children, being the daughter of George and Mary Coble. She was of 
a quiet, retiring disposition and of great strength of character. When 
young she availed herself of all possible opportunities for improvement and 
acquired a good general education as well as skill in all the arts and duties 
that fall within the sphere of a devoted wife and mother. On December 4, 
1865, she united with the Cherry Grove Methodist Episcopal church, later 
transferring her membership to the Clayton church when they took up their 
residence there, and remained a devout and faithful member of the church 
militant until her passing away. After the death of her husband, she re- 
mained in her home in Clayton until failing health made her dependent on 



446 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

the loving care of children. She died March 17, 191 1, in her sixty-eighth 
year. She had Hved to see her sons established in life, and, happy in their 
happiness, had been content to go the way of all mankind. She was also 
survived by a brother, Elihu Coble, of Stilesville, and a sister, Mrs. John 
Worrell, of Clayton. 

Mark M. Short spent his boyhood days on the homestead farm in Cen- 
ter township, near the Liberty township line. He attended the district 
schools of that locality, where he received his elementary education, finish- 
ing his studies at Clayton. In 1895 he left Center township and moved 
north of Clayton, where he farmed for about one year, when he disposed 
of his holdings and moved to Clayton. On September 11, 1901, Mr. Short 
was united in marriage with Ruth A., daughter of Thomas J. and Tilitha 
(Tudor) Miles. After marriage he took up his residence on the farm where 
he now makes his home and carries on general farming in addition to operat- 
ing a dairy. He owns in all about three hundred acres of land, seventy- 
five of this being in his residence farm. In addition to his farm duties, he 
owns and operates the health resort known as Camp Short, located on his 
farm about three miles northeast of Clayton. This is a beautiful spot, in 
an ideal stretch of country, and is known for its sparkling spring of artesian 
water of rare qualities. There are many visitors to this place throughout 
the year who come for the waters and Mr. Short now has a summer home 
there. It is a very attractive place and especially conducive to recreation 
during the summer season. 

Mr. Short's fraternal affiliations are with the Free and Accepted Ma- 
sons and also the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, holding his member- 
ship in these two bodies through the local lodges at Clayton. In politics, 
Mr. Short is a "stand-pat" Republican and an earnest advocate of the prin- 
ciples of that party, although not taking any active part in the administra- 
tion of his party's affairs. He is a man of quiet and retiring disposition, but 
genial and friendly and counts his friends and acquaintances in great num- 
bers. The family is regarded among the first of their community, a charm- 
ing family circle wherein the two children, Paul M. and Helen L., are be- 
ing trained so as to fit them for useful and happy lives when they come to 
years of maturity. Mr. Short is a man of sterling honesty and strict in- 
tegrity who has the trust and confidence of all with whom he comes in con- 
tact. His past record and personal character justify the belief that the fu- 
ture holds in store for him far greater success than he has already achieved 
and a wider range of usefulness to mankind than has yet been his privilege. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 447 

THOMAS HOWARD MITCHELL. 

Almost all of the great men of history come from the farm. Few heroes 
have come from the slums and fewer still from palaces. To call a man a 
farmer is to class him in the same scale as George Washington, our rirst 
President; Abraham Lincoln, our martyred President, or any one of a dozen 
governors of Indiana. It is plain common folk who have characteristics. In 
cultured, select society every one is alike ; they all appear to have been poured 
into the same mold. In a weahhy club all men's clothes are new, they all 
look alike, and especially since they are all cut by the most fashionable tailors, 
while among people who have but one week-day suit the garment becomes 
creased and molded to the body. Indeed, it is the farmer who is to save our 
nation today, as his is the hand which holds the purse-strings of the land. 

Thomas Howarcf Mitchell, the son of Columbus and Elizabeth (Wills) 
Mitchell, was born May 22, 1869, on the National road south of Clayton, 
Hendricks county, Indiana. Since the family history of the Mitchells has 
been traced in the sketch of Amos Mitchell a brother of Thomas H., in an- 
other part of this volume, the reader is referred to that sketch for the 
genealogy of the Mitchell family. 

Thomas H. Mitchell has lived all of his life on the farm where he was 
born. He received a good, common-school education and early began the life 
of a farmer, and is now the owner of one hundred and twenty acres of land 
which he has well improved in every way. While raising all the crops com- 
mon to this locality, he has made a specialty of the dairy business. He keeps 
thoroughbred Holstein cattle for his dairy herd, and has a barn which has 
been built especially for dairy purposes. It is equipped with all the modern 
conveniences and contrivances for the sanitary protection of milk. He has 
patent milking machines installed in his barn and this is the only dairy in the 
township which has them. His equipment in the barn is run by gas engines. 
In addition to his farming and dairying, he also manages a threshing machine 
outfit during the summer season, and for the past four years has added not 
a little to his annual income from the operation of this outfit. 

Mr. Mitchell was married September 30, i8qi, to Ella Givan. the 
daughter of George M. and Ann Givan. George Givan was born Tune 19, 
1827 in Dearborn countv, Indiana, and was a lifelong farmer and carpenter. 
His parents were Gilbert T. and Sarah (Merrill) Givan, who were natives 
of Marvland and Virginia, respectively. They came to Dearborn county, 
Indiana^ earlv in its historv and lived on a farm there for over fifty years 



448 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

George Givan died May 29, 1906, his wife having passed away several years 
previous, on November 11, 1902. Mr. and Mrs. George Givan were the 
parents of eleven children, John F., Mrs. Mary Bell Bruce, Sanford E., Mrs. 
Harriet J. Smith, Sarah E., Mrs. Eva A. Farquer, Charles M., Mrs. Ella J. 
Mitchell (the wife of Thomas H. Mitchell), Harry R., Erving, deceased, 
and Mrs. Cora A. Slater. 

Mr. and Mrs. Mitchell have one child, Carl Columbus, born April 26, 
1894, who is still with his parents. The family are all members of the 
Presbyterian church at Clayton, Indiana, and Mr. Mitchell has been an elder 
in the church for the past ten years. Politically, he is a Democrat, but has 
never been inclined to take a very active part in politics. Fraternally, he is a 
member of the Free and Accepted Masons and is now serving his fourth year 
as master of the lodge at Clayton. Fie is a man of splendid characteristics 
which have won for him a wide circle of friends in the community where 
he has lived his whole career. 



SAMUEL BARBER. 



A review of the life of the honored subject of this biographical sketch 
must of necessity be brief and general in its character. To enter fully into 
the interesting details of the career of Mr. Barber, touching the earnest and 
persistent efforts of his earlier years and successes of later days, would far 
transcend the limits of this article. He has filled a large place in the ranks 
of the enterprising and public-spirited men of his day and has been an im- 
portant factor in the growth and development of North Salem's, industrial 
and commercial interests. 

Samuel Barber, a prominent retired business man of Norih Salem, In- 
diana, was born April 25, 1840, in Montgomery county, this state, the son 
of John and Annie (Cunningham) Barber, both of whom were born in 
Botetourt county, Virginia, where they grew up and where they were mar- 
ried. Shortly after their marriage, they came to Indiana and entered gov- 
ernment land near Ladoga, Montgomery county, where they lived for about 
thirty-five years. .Some years before the Civil War they came to Hendricks 
county and settled about one and one-half miles north of North Salem, but 
after a short time they went back to Montgomery county, and still later went 
to Boone county, this state, where thev located on a farm near lamestown. 




SAMUEL BARBER 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 449 

where thev lived for the remainder of their Hves. John Barber and his wife 
were the parents of two children, Samuel and Eliza. Eliza married Roland 
Alexander and died about the year 1878. 

Samuel Barber lived with his parents until his marriage, at the age of 
twenty. He was married September 9, i860, to Mary Ann Robbins, a native 
of North Carolina. Her parents, Jacob and Barbara Robbins, came from 
North Carolina and settled three miles south of North Salem when Mrs. 
Barber was onlv about one year old. After his marriage Mr. Barber operated 
a farm near North Salem for about fifteen years, after which he engaged m 
the lumber business at North Salem, which he followed for the rest of his 
active life. He was in partnership with F. M. Davis until the latter's death, 
which occurred in 1887, and from that time until 1909 he managed the busi- 
ness alone. In the latter year Smith Davis became a partner and the business 
is still continued under the firm name of Barber & Davis. In addition to his 
lumber interests. Mr. Barber owns a farm of eighty acres north of North 
Salem, and also formerly owned two hundred acres of good land in addition, 
which' he gave to his daughter, Annie, the only child of his first marriage. 
The first wife of Mr. Barber died July 9, 1908, and on February 2, 1910, 
Mr Barber married Mrs. Mary Jane Cusick, the widow of Joseph Cusick, 
who was born at Freeburg, near Belleville, lUinois, the daughter of George 
W. and Martha (Smith) Smith. In 1865 her parents moved to Douglas 
countv, Illinois, where she grew to womanhood and married Mr. Cusick. 
After' her marriage she lived at Terre Haute until her husband died, in July, 
1907, after which she moved to Newman, Illinois, where she remained until 
her marriage to Mr. Barber. Annie, the only child of Mr. Barber, married 
Elbert Hays, and has one daughter, Hattie. Mr. and Mrs. Hays live on the 
home farm of Mr. Barber which he bought. 

Mr. Barber has been a life-long Republican in politics, and has always 
taken an active part in the councils of his party. He and his wife are con- 
sistent members of the Christian church and he is a member of the board of 
trustees. For a man of seventy-four years, Mr. Barber is remarkably well 
preserved and active, and would easily pass for a man twenty years younger. 
His long life in this community has made him an influential factor in the 
growth of the town and vicinity and because he has always been ready to 
lend his aid and support to all laudable measures and enterprises for the 
welfare of his community, he is very popular with the people of his town and 
vicinity. 

(29) 



450 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

JOHN C. RYNERSON. 

It is always pleasant and profitable to contemplate the career of a man 
M^ho has won a definite goal in life, whose career has been such as to com- 
mand the honor and respect of his fellow citizens. Such, in brief was the 
record of the well-known agriculturist whose name heads this sketch than 
whom a more whole-souled or popular man it would be difficult to find 
withm the limits of Hendricks county, where he maintained his home and 
where he labored not only for his individual advancement and that of his 
immediate family, but also for the improvement of the entire community 
whose mterests he ever had at heart. 

John C. Rynerson, whose death occurred on May 17, 1914, was born 
on March 7. 1835, m Liberty township, this county, the son of John and 
Elizabeth (Cunningham) Rynerson, the former of whom was a native of 
Salt River, Mercer county, Kentucky, and was a life-long farmer. He was 
born m Kentucky in 1795 and died in Owen county, this state, in 1864 at 
the age of sixty-nine years. When he first came to Hendricks county ii is 
thought that he probably entered government land about one mile northeast 
ot Clayton. He later returned to Kentucky, but after a short time again 
came to Indiana, this time locating in Belleville, this county, at the time 
when the immediate subject of this sketch was four years old. In addition 
to his duties as a farmer, he was a minister in the Missionarv Baptist church 
devoting all the time possible to the work of the Gospel in different coun- 
ties in the state. He took an active part in politics during the dark days of 
the Civil War and was an extremist against slavery. He was a stanch Re- 
publican, being among the first to affiliate with the partv at its birth He 
never held any offices, but was at one time active in the race for delegate to 
the constitutional convention. He did not belong to anv secret orders 
giving all his time to his ministerial labors and the work of conductino- his 
farm. He had an excellent farm in Liberty township, which he had wrested 
from the grasp of the wilderness. He was twice married, his first wife be- 
ing Elizabeth Cunningham, by whom he became the father of eleven chil- 
dren, namely: William L., deceased, as are also fames H. and Thomas 
Christopher. The fourth child was Ary Adeline (Mrs. Willis) and the 
htth child in order of birth was the immediate subject of this sketch. Mary 
Ann (Mrs. Worrell), Sarah Frances (Mrs. Worrell), Laura (Mrs Goss) 
and Elizabeth (Mrs. Moon), all deceased. Two other daughters are Jane 
(Mrs. Worrell) and Martha (Mrs. Cooper). The first Mrs. Rvnerson'was 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 45 ^ 

a native of Mercer county, Kentucky, and died at the age of forty-one years, 
in 1853. Her parents were also natives of the same county in Kentucky. 

Mr. Rynerson chose as his second wife Sarah Goss, daughter of George 
and Mary '(Goss) Goss, both of whom were natives of Owen county, this 
state. To this union were born five children, three of whom are dead. These 
are Justin, Jessie (Mrs. Eaton) and Eddie (Mrs. Goss) ; the surviving mem- 
bers of the family are Merlin and George. 

John C. Rynerson received his schooling in the township schools of this 
countv and when quite voung began to take an active interest in the home 
farm.' He has devoted the entire efforts of his life to the vocation of farm- 
ing and is unusuallv well informed along this line. He owns one hundred 
and three acres of excellent land located close to the Pennsylvania railroad 
tracks in Liberty township, this county. 

On October 24, i860, Mr. Rvnerson was united in wedlock with Sarah 
Jane daughter of Tames and Salinda (Darnell) Ferguson, the former of 
whom was a native of Virginia and the latter born at Mount Sterling, Ken- 
tucky. He was a carpenter and also farmed some. When but fourteen 
years of age, he came with his father from their native state. He was born 
in 1816 and died in Liberty township in 1872. With his parents he settled 
about two miles northeast of Clayton. On February 28, 1839, he was united 
in marriage with Salinda Darnell, whose parents had come to the Hoosier 
state from Mount Sterling. Kentucky. Her death occurred in 1863 on the 
homestead in Liberty township. They were the parents of nine children, 
the eldest of whom was Sarah Jane, wife of the immediate subject of this 
sketch; Martha A. (Mrs. Jackson), Frank C., Mary (Mrs. Robinson), Alonzo, 
all of whom are living. Those who have passed away are Louisa E. (Mrs. 
Haynes), Alice (Mrs. Thompson), Emma, who died when seven years old, 
and one babe which died in early infancy. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Rynerson have been born a family of seven children, 
two of whom, John Lucien and Jennie Belle, died when young. Viola, the 
eldest daughter, married Milo McCormick, who is a farmer and trader and 
resides in Clayton. They have no family. Minnie became the wife of Ora 
Mountain (now deceased), a hardware and implement merchant at Clay- 
ton. He died in 191 3. leaving two children, Paul and Carl, both of whom 
reside at home and Paul now manages the business for the widow. Eliza- 
beth is the wife of John Lucas, of Des Moines, Iowa. He is now retired 
from active labors, but has filled various offices for the past sixteen years, 
being ex-treasurer of his county. They are the parents of two children. 
Noble and Chester. William took as his wife Anna Downing and they have 



452 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

hvo children, Hazel and Calvin. He is an operator for the Western Union 
Telegraph Company and is at present stationed somewhere in Colorado Er- 
nest married Maude Pruitt and lives on his father's farm in Liberty town- 
ship. He is the father of one son, Max. 

Mr. Rynerson's political affiliation was for many years with the Repub- 
lean party His first vote after reaching his majority was cast for Fremont 
the Republican nominee for President in 1856, and during his eariier man- 
hood he was a most enthusiastic Republican, but of later years he has been 
rather independent in his politics, choosing the man in preference to the 
party or platform. Mr. Rynerson is a member of the Christian church at 
Clayton and, together with his wife, does all within his power to promote 
the cause of the church. He has served his society as deacon for many years. 
His fraternal affiliation is with the ancient order of Freemasonry, being a 
member of Lodge No. 463 at Clayton. Mr. Rynerson is a man of unusually 
fine character, standing ''four-square to every wind that blows " His is a 
well-rounded and useful life, showing true blue in all his relations with his 
fellow men He is quiet and unassuming, a man of steriing qualities and 
well grounded principles, and during the years of his residence here he has 
endeared himself to a great circle of friends and acquaintances who regard 
him with all confidence and esteem. While Mr. Rynerson has exceeded man's 
allotted span of three score years and ten, being seventy-nine years old at 
this time, he is hale and hearty, unusually well preserved both bodily and 
mentally. -^ 



DAVID B. WILLS. 



David B. Wills belongs to that class of men who win in life's battles by 
sheer force of personality and determination, rather than by the influence of 
friends or freak of fortune, and in whatever he has undertaken he has 
shown himself to be a man of ability and honor, true to whatever trusts 
have been imposed in him. Mr. Wills was born in Clayton, Hendricks 
cotmty, Indiana, on October 25, 1856, the son of Amos Stewart and Lucinda 
(Tateman) Wills. 

Amos S. Wills was born in Montgomery county, Kentucky, in 1809 
and came to Hendricks county in 183 1 where he settled north of Clavton and 
entered land trom the government. He had received a fairly good education 
m his native state and was by natural ability a leader among men He was 
a stanch advocate of the principles of the Republican party and a devout 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 453 

member of the ancient order of Freemasonry, of which order he became a 
member soon after attaining his majority. Prior to coming to this state, he 
was united in marriage with Lucinda Tateman, born in his native county on 
May 8 1815. Shortly after coming to Hendricks county, Mr. Wills was 
elected 'to the office of justice of the peace, which office he held for sixty 
consecutive vears, a truly enviable record. So wise and impartial was he in 
his administ'ration of justice that in all his years of service he had never had 
a decision of his reversed on appeal. His death occurred at Clayton m 1892, 
and was a distinct loss to the community. In every community some men 
are known for their upright lives, strong conmion sense and moral worth, 
rather than for their wealth or political standing. Their neighbors and ac- 
quaintances respect them, the younger generations heed their examples and 
when they "wrap the drapery of their couch about them and lie down to 
pleasant dreams," posterity listens with reverence to the stor>- of their quiet 
and useful lives. Among such men of a past generation m Indiana was the 
late Amos Stewart Wills, who was not only a progressive man of affairs, but 
a man of modest and unassuming demeanor, a fine type of the reliable, self- 
made American, a friend to the poor, charitable to the faults of his neigh- 
bors and who always stood ready to unite with them in every good work and 
active in the support of laudable public interests. He was proud of the grand 
state of Indiana and zealous of its progress and prosperity. He was a man 
who in every respect merited the high esteem in which he was universally 
held for he was a man of public spirit, intellectual attainments and exemplar)- 
character. During the latter years of his life, both he and his good wife 
made their home in Clayton with the immediate subject of this sketch, and 
there she, too, passed away in 1897- While Amos S. Wills never united with 
any church, yet throughout his life he lived the life of a devout Christian and 
no communicant could order his life more carefully nor more in conformity 
with the principles laid down by the Master than did he. He was a regular 
attendant on the services of the Christian church and contributed liberally of 
both time and means to further the great cause. In all his activities m this 
direction he was ably assisted by his devoted wife. They were the parents of 
thirteen children, one of whom, William Henry Harrison died ^ infancy 
and Lena Leota passed away at the age of sixteen years. Several others of 
the familv have passed away, being James Irwin, Elizabeth (Mrs. Mitche 1 . 
John W.,' Parker, Mary Ruth and another infant. Those remaining, m addi- 
tion to the immediate subject of this sketch, are Eldridge, Nancy Jane (Mrs. 
Garrison), Taylor Allen and Lilly Belle (Mrs. Farquer). 



^54 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

David B. Wills passed the years of his early boyhood on the home farm 
attending- the township schools and assisting in the home work Decidin^^ 
against the vocation of farming as his life work, at the age of fifteen he wat 
apprenticed to the carpenter's trade, which he followed for nearly thirtv 
years, confining his efforts largely to work within the limits of this county 
About 1901 he associated himself with a partner and engaged in the lumber 
business, later purchasing his partner's interest. He has continued alone 
m this enterprise and by his ability and energy has built up a large and thriv- 
ing business. Mr. Wills is a worthy son of his excellent father and has 
come to his position as one of the leading business men of Clavton through 
the practice of the principles implanted in him during his childhood Mr 
Wills religious affiliation is with the Presbyterian church, of which he is an 
active and devout member. His fraternal affiliation is with the Free and 
Accepted Masons, being a member of Lodge No. 463 at Clayton. Politically 
he IS a Republican with decidedly progressive views. His integrity has ever 
been unassailable, his honor unimpeachable, and he stands now, as he has stood 
111 the past, one of the successful men and representative citizens of the day 
and generation. He is a busy man. but he finds time and opportuni^v to 
take an interest in matters pertaining to the progress and growth of his com- 
munity and county and keeps abreast of the times on all questions of vital 
interest. Mr. and Mrs. Wills are the parents of seven children, three of 
whom have passed away. These are Carl, Esther and Helen, who died in 
infancy. The others are Eva, Luella. George and Frank, the last three 
named remaining at home. 



LEANDE-R M. CAMPBELL. 

The gift of life is so mysterious that when that other mystery which 
we call death interrupts the current of human hopes and aspirations, we 
know not m what new channel the spirit may be turned, but if the life has 
been characterized by uprightness and honor everything that it has touched 
in Its onward passage must have received a beneficent inspiration 

In the various relations of life the late Leander M. Campbell, of Danville 
gave to the world the best of an essentially strong, noble and loyal nature'- 
his hfe was guided and governed by the highest principles of integrity and 
honor; he was humanity's friend and his nature was attuned to tolerance 
and sympathy. Mr. Campbell was a pioneer member of the Hendricks 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 455 

county bar. and for a long lapse of years he was recognized as one of the 
leaders of his profession, figuring prominently in nearly all the important 
litigation of the county. His fine capabilities and upright character endeared 
him to a large circle of friends, and he was honored by a lucrative clientele 
and called to positions of high official trust, being at different times a mem- 
ber of both houses of the Indiana Legislature. 

Leander M. Campbell was a native of Lewis county, Kentucky, !born 
February 12, 1833. and he was a son of Lewis and Susan Campbell, both of 
whom died in the state of Kentucky. Leander was educated in the common 
schools of his community, and studied law with his brother in Maysville, 
Kentucky. He came to Indiana before attaining his legal majority, and set- 
tled on section 17 in Middle township, Hendricks county, in 1852. He was 
too young to be admitted to the bar, and so he taught school for a few years, 
being at one time principal of the Belleville school. A few years later he 
was admitted to the bar and was actively engaged in the practice of his pro- 
fession up to the time of his death. As a lawyer he show^ed abilities of the 
most solid and definite order, gaining success by close application and the 
effective employment of his talents, and ever observing those unwritten ethics 
through whose influence the dignity and honor of the profession are main- 
tained. He was not long in attending high prestige as one of the representa- 
tive members of the bar of Hendricks county, a bar notable at the present 
time, as in the past, for the professional brilliancy and marked precedence 
of its general personnel. Broad and comprehensive knowledge of the law 
and a distinct facility in its application, both as a trial lawyer and a coun- 
selor, enabled him to build up a very substantial practice. This success in the 
work of his profession was cumulative and his prestige grew apace, so that 
at the time of his death he stood in the front ranks as a lawyer. 

As a citizen Mr. Campbell occupied an equally high place in the com- 
munity, being ever mindful of those moral obligations that the highest citi- 
zenship entails. His long residence in the county gave him an extensive 
accjuaintance and endeared him to many people who will be moved to appre- 
ciation and admiration of this brief tribute to a man essentially simple and 
unostentatious in his tastes and habits, one of the world's faithful and pro- 
ductive workers whose success was worthily won. 

Leander M. Campbell was first married September 19, 1852, to Ma- 
tilda Hammond, by whom he had four children, only one of whom is now 
living, Mrs. Cora Campbell Barnett, of Indianapolis. On June 15, 1867, he 
was married to Lucinda Hamrick, a daughter of A. D. and Eliza (Simpson) 
Hamrick. both natives of Mason county, Kentucky. The Hamrick family is 
one of the most prominent families of Putnam county, Indiana, members of 



45° HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

the family figuring largely in the political and civic life of the county for 
several generat.ons A. D. Hamrick was a prosperous farmer and H^ to 
th venerable age of nmety-two. He was a prominent politician a.^^ Re 
pubhcan party worker being a special friend of Governor Oliver P. Morton" 
His lather was in the Revolutionary War. Norton. 

Leander M. Campbell was a stalwart in the camp of the Republican 

ernally he was a prominent Odd Fellow. Mr. Campbell died at his home 

n Danville June i6, 1890. Mrs. Campbell, a woman of rare culture and 

charming personality, still resides in the Danville home, a home endeared to 

^XZ °"' "' "^ '^"' '°"^ '"°*" '°' its^^enerous and refined 

for il!^r h" "'h'T P'"""''"'' "'^ "*' °^ ^'^"'^'^ M- Campbell counted 
teem d whiieT "f ' ""'" ''"'' '" P°P"'" -"^d'"- -^ es- 

e hearts f t' ""*' 7?- "■°'" '" '^'°"' '''^ "^™^ '^ «--" deeply in 
the hearts of a legion of friends who came in touch with his large and 
.generous influenre '^"^s*^ and 



JONATHAN F. PHILLIPS. 

men o"f tf ^ "' ''f ^°"'*'" ^^ ^'''"'P^ '" *^ f™"' ^""^ °f 'he leading 
men of his community, justice is rendered a biographical fact uni,ersallv 
recognized throughout the locality long honored by his' citizens ^ tho e 
all familiar with his history. Although a quiet and unassuming man with 
no ambition for public position or leadership, he contributed much to the 
ram'e1'o7h "T "'Tu ^<^™"'=^'""'' °f his community, while his admirable 
dai'v 1 e ! f 7 T "'' *'^ ^f-ghtforward, upright course of his 
daily hfe won for him the esteem and confidence of the circles in which he 
moved, and, although he is now sleeping the "sleep of the just," his influence 
Still lives and his memory is greatly revered. 

Jonathan F. Phillips, who was the owner of one hundred and rifty acres 
of fine farmmg land in Clay township, this county, was born in the town- 
ship where his entire life was spent, on April i6, 1840. and died in the home 
where he spent so many happy years, October 28, 1907. He was the son of 
Samuel and Rachel fNewm.an) Phillips, his father being a native of North 
Carolina, his birth having occurred there on July 6, 1808. while his mother 
also was born in the same state on March 16. 1818. When Samuel Phillips 
was a young man he and his parents came to Wavne countv. Indiana where 




JONATHAN F. PHILLIPS 



I 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 457 

they remained until the death of his father, which occurred about one year 
later. He, with his mother, came to Hendricks county, settling in Clay town- 
ship, where he remained until his death, which occurred July 31, 1880. 
Samuel Phillips was married to Rachel Newman, daughter of John and Eliza- 
beth (Pool) Newman, and to this union were born nine children: Jonathan, 
the immediate subject of this sketch; Susannah, born November 11, 1841, 
who married Enoch Harlan; Albert Lorenzo, born March 27, 1844; Lewis, 
born December 12, 1846, married Rozella Masten; Samuel E., born Novem- 
ber 5, 1849, deceased; Sallie, born July 10, 1852, married William Shirley; 
John N., born June 24, 1855, married Joanna Ratcliff ; Oliver P., born Octo- 
ber 28, 1858, first married Ella Swain, and after her death he married Addie 
O'Neal; Emery, born November 3, 1863, first married Rosa Justice, and 
after her death, Martha Parker. 

Jonathan F. Phillips received all of his common school education in the 
district schools of Clay township, and when still a very young man he began 
to work on the farm. He continued to reside on the home farm, helping 
his father, until his marriage, which occurred on March 23. 1868. at which 
time he was married to Makina Couch, who was a daughter of Samuel and 
Lydia (Hunt) Couch, and to this union were born five children: Alma C, 
who is a teacher and a very cultured woman; Lora, the wife of Milton West; 
Aldus W., who married Edna Atkins and has three children, Myron A., 
Mary M. and Edith Alma; Amanda died at the age of twenty-two years; 
Olney W. is unmarried and at home with his mother. 

The parents of Mrs. Phillips were both natives of North Carolina, 
where they lived all their lives. They reared a family of five children : 
Tilghman, who married Eusebia Stanley ; Steven, who married Rena Nowlin ; 
Makina, the wife of Mr. Phillips; George married Mary Peratt, and Walter, 
who is unmarried. Mrs. Phillips' father died in 1847 ^^^ her mother in 1893. 

Mr. Phillips was a life-long Republican and. while favoring the princi- 
ples of that party, he was not a partisan to the degree that blinded him to the 
faults of local candidates on his own party ticket. He always reserved the 
right to cast his vote in local elections for the best candidate, irrespective of 
party. He was always a loyal member of the Grand Army of the Republic, 
having served for sixteen months during the Civil War in Company B, One 
Hundred Seventeenth Regiment Volunteer Infantry. His service was emi- 
nently satisfactory and upon an honorable discharge from the service he re- 
turned to Hendricks county. He and the members of his family were loyal 
and devoted adherents of the M-ethodist Episcopal church, and during his 



458 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

life he was a regular attendant on the services of that denomination. He was 
always a sympathetic and ready helper in all enterprises which had for their 
object the w-elfare of the community. His upright and manly life won for 
him a large circle of friends throughout the township who sincerely mourn 
his loss. 



MORDECAT CARTER. 



A review of the life of the honored subject of this biographical sketch 
must of necessity be brief and general in its character. To enter fully into 
the interesting details of the career of Mr. Carter, touching the earnest and 
persistent efforts of his earlier years and successes of later days, would far 
transcend the limits of this article. Ele has filled a large place in the ranks 
of the enterprising and public-spirited men of his day and has been an im- 
portant factor in the growth and development of Danville's industrial and 
commercial interests. Within the past few years he has become identified 
wdth banking and other financial institutions in Indianapolis, although he 
still retains a part of his interests in Danville. 

Mordecai Carter, vice-president of the Continental National Bank and 
president of the State Savings and Trust Company, both of Indianapolis, 
was born near Plainfield, Hendricks county, Indiana. Elis parents, Newlin 
and Beulah (Hunt) Carter, were both natives of this county, his father liv- 
ing the life of a farmer until his death, in July, 1912. Mr. and Mrs. Xewdin 
Carter reared a family of eight children, seven of whom are living : Dr. Amos 
Carter, of Plainfield; Mrs. Lydia H. Cope, of Plainfield; Mordecai, the im- 
mediate subject of this sketch; Mrs. Sarah S. Gilbert, of Grand Junction, 
Colorado; Caleb H., vice-president of the American State Bank of Indian- 
apolis; Mrs. Margaret Mills, of West Newton, Indiana; Alonzo J., of Yorba 
Linda, California, and Rachel Elina, who died in February, 1912. Mr 
Carter was born on his father's farm and lived there until he was nearly 
grown. He received his common-school education in the district schools of 
his home tow^nship and then entered the high school at Plainfield. Immedi- 
ately after leaving high school he engaged in the hardware and lumber busi- 
ness at Plainfield, where he remained for two years. He then went into the 
implement and buggy business, which he follow^ed for the next two years, 
at the expiration of which time he was appointed deputy auditor of Hendricks 
county under John Kendall and served in that capacity from 1885 until iJ 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 459 

Upon retiring from this position, he was offered the position of general book- 
keeper in the First National Bank of Danville and served in that capacity 
until 1895, when he succeeded Capt. B. F. Thomas as cashier of the bank. 
He proved to he a close student of the banking problem and such was the 
confidence of the directors of the bank in his ability that in 1899 he was 
elected president of this institution. He was also elected secretary of the 
Danville Tru.-t Company, which positions he held until 1909, when he was 
instrumental in the organization of the Continental National Bank, of Indi- 
anapolis. Since the organization of the latter institution he has become its 
vice-president and is occupying that important position at the. present time. 
In 19 1 3 he was elected president of State .Savings and Trust Company, which 
\vas organized in June of that year. The directors chose Mr. Carter on ac- 
count of his ability and practical banking experience. He was the first secre- 
tary for two years of the Indiana Bankers' Association upon its organization 
in 1897. He is also president of the Lindhurst Realty Company, of Indi- 
anapolis, and a director and one of the incorporators of the Klondyke Milling 
Company, of Danville. 

Mr. Carter has always taken a great interest in public affairs and has 
allied himself with the Republican party. In 1908 he was elected to the 
lower house of the Legislature from Hendricks county, and was re-elected in 
J910. While in the Legislature he was appointed one of the four commis- 
sioners to investigate and report on a state penal farm. 

Mr. Carter was married in 1888 to Laura Kellum, daughter of Mr. and 
Mrs. Wesley Kellum, of Friendswood, Indiana. They have two children, 
Lucile, who is now a student in the University of Illinois, and Leland K., who 
is a student at Westtown, Pennsylvania. Mrs. Carter died on March 15, 

1895- 

Mr. Carter has been a life-long member of the Friends church and con- 
tributes liberally to the support of that denonaination. In his fraternal 
affiliations he is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias. Socially, he is a mem- 
ber of the Columbia and Marion Clubs of Indianapolis. He is also a mem- 
ber of the Chamber of Commerce and is a member of the board of directors, 
and of the finance and house committees. While living in Danville he took 
an active part in every movement which had to do with the welfare of the 
town. He has been for many years a trustee and one of the stanchest friends 
of the Central Normal College. He was one of the organizers and prime 
movers of the movement to get the Carnegie library in Danville, and was 



460 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

appointed l)v the court as one of the trustees of the Hbrary. He was president 
of the Indiana Library Trustees' Association in 191 1. 

It is readily seen that ]\Ir. Carter has Ijeen a very l^usy man all of his 
life and yet, in spite of the multitudinous activities of his life, he has never 
allowed the pursuit of wealth to warp his kindly nature. He is indeed a 
representative of that sterling type of the world's workers who have furnished 
much of the bone and sinew of the country and added to the stability of our 
country and its institutions. He has preserved his faculties and the warmth 
of his heart for the broadening helpful influence of human life and is a kindly 
genial friend and a gentleman whom it is always a pleasure to meet. 



GEORGE T. PATTISON. 

The life history of him whose name heads this biographical sketch has 
been for many years closely identified with the history of Hendricks county, 
Indiana. Throughout the years his life has been one of untiring activity and 
it has been crowned with success both as an instructor in school and college, 
and as a lawyer. Years of conscientious work as a lawyer have brought 
with them not only 'increase of practice and reputation, but also that growth 
in legal knowledge and that wide and accurate judgment the possession of 
which constitutes marked excellence in the profession. His life affords a 
splendid example of what an American youth, plentifully endowed with 
good common sense, energy and determination, can accomplish when accom- 
panied by good moral principles. From the beginning, he has been intensely 
methodical and unswervingly persistent in search of the true light and of 
the essentials of the legal foundation and sources of legal conception and 
thought, holding devoutly to the highly embellished record of equity and the 
sure, certain, invincible methods of practice. 

George T. Pattison, one of the leading attorneys of Danville, was born 
in Henry county, this state, July 18, 1857. His parents were William B. and 
Susan A. (Colville) Pattison, both of whom were natives of Kentucky. His 
father is still living with his son. George T.. at the advanced age of eighty- 
nine years, while his mother's death occurred in 19 12, at the age of eighty- 
four. Mr. and Mrs. William B. Pattison were the parents of four children, 
two of whom are living, Mrs. Keturah Keitner, of Indianapolis, and George T. 

George T. Pattison received his education in the district schools near 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 461 

Ehvood, Indiana, and later attended school in the city of Elwood, his father 
having moved from Henry county to Madison county, Indiana, during his 
boyhood. Subsequently he attended the National Normal University at 
Lebanon, Ohio, for eighteen months, after which he taught school for three 
years, making a successful record in that profession. In 1883 he entered the 
Central Normal College at Danville, Indiana, and graduated from that insti- 
tution two years later. He then engaged in the teaching profession and fol- 
lowed it continuously and successfully for the next twelve years, all of his 
teaching being in the Central Normal College. He had full charge of the 
commercial work in the college until he began the study of law and abstract- 
ing in 1897. In 1904 he began to devote his entire time to his law practice 
and associated with Judge J. L. Clark until Judge Clark went on the bench. 

Mr. Pattison was married in August, 1886, to Jennie M. Downard, the 
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Downard. Mr. and Mrs.. Pattison have 
three children: Marion, the wife of Carl Hawley, of Toledo, Ohio; Albert, 
who is now attending the Central Normal College, and Ruth, who is a stu- 
dent in the high school at Danville. 

Mr. and Mrs. Pattison are devoted and consistent members of the 
Methodist Episcopal church of Danville, and for many years Mr. Pattison 
has been a member of its official board. He is also secretary of the college 
board of trustees and has held that important position for many years. Fra- 
ternally, he is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and is at 
present the district deputy of the district in which the Danville lodge is situ- 
ated. He was a member of the school board of Danville for nine years and 
was no small factor in building up the schools of the city to their present 
high standard. Politically, Mr. Pattison has been a life-long Republican, and 
has taken more or less interest in local campaigns. However, he has not 
held any public positions at the hands of his party. 

Mr. Pattison's life has been a busy and useful one and his career fully 
exemplifies what can be accomplished by a man who is filled with the deter- 
mination to succeed in life. As a public school teacher for many years and 
later as a college professor, he was a factor of great power in molding the 
lives of young people. In his official capacity as a member of the school 
board he was instrumental in employing high grade teachers in the city 
schools of his resident town and in every way he encouraged the educational 
life of the community. Whether his work has been in the school room, the 
lodge room, in his law practice or wherever he has been found, it can be 
truly said of him that he was always animated by high ideals and the desire 



462 I[ENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

to treat his fellow man with exact justice. He has attained to an enviable 
standini;- in the legal profession of his county and his reading of the law is 
always characterized by that fine sympathy which is the true mark of great 
advocates. He is a man of genial personality and makes friends with all 
with whom he comes in contact. 



ELMER HODSON. 



The student interested in the history of Hendricks county does not have 
to carry his investigations far into its annals before learning that Elmer 
Hodson has long been one of its most active and leading citizens in its agri- 
cultural and stock-raising interests and that his labors have been a potent 
force in making this a rich agricultural region, for through several decades 
he has carried on general farming, gradually improving his valuable place, 
and while he has prospered in this he has also found time and ample oppor- 
tunity to assist in the material and civic development of the county. 

The subject's ancestral record, in brief, is as follows : On the paternal 
side, the great-great-grandparents were George and Mary (Thacher) Hod- 
son; great-grandparents. Robert and Rachel (Mills) Hodson; grandparents, 
Jesse and Mary (Wilson) Hodson, whose children were Robert W., Jesse 
W., Jeremiah W., Eli W., Elizabeth W., Rachel W., Mary W., and Joel W. 
Mary Wilson was a daughter of Jeremiah and Elizabeth (Saferight) Wil- 
son. On the maternal side, the grandparents were Samuel and Rebecca (Bin- 
ford) Parker, the former being a son of Joseph or Josiah and Martha (Peel) 
Parker, and the latter a daughter of James and Hannah (Crew) Binford. 
To Samuel and Rebecca Parker were born the following children : Silas, 
John, James, Josiah (died in young manhood, single), Hannah Jane (mother 
of the subject), Martha Ann, and Angelina, who married a Mr. Brown and 
died about a year later, leaving a baby girl who died about six weeks after her 
mother's death. 

Elmer Hodson, the son of Joel and Hannah Jane (Parker) Hodson, 
was born in the house in which he is now living on June 15, 1866. His fa- 
ther was born in North Carolina on August 3, 181 7, and came to this state 
with his parents in 1831. They located in Mill Creek settlement, but after 
a year's residence there, they entered land in Clay township in 1832. A 
few years later Joel Hodson entered six hundred and forty acres of land in 
Iowa, and held it for a number of years, and when he sold it at a good price 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



463 



he invested the proceeds in land in this county. He spent his whole life in 
this county from the time he came here in 1831 until his death, which oc- 
curred June 3 1911. His first wife was Charlotte Brown, and to this mar- 
riao-e was born one child, Brazeldon B., who married Ann Bryant. After 
the'death of his first wife. Joel Hodson married Sarah A. Hill, and to this 
marriage there were born three children: John R., who married Ella Mas- 
ten and after her death, Mrs. Lydia Jessup; Jesse C. married Ruth Masten; 
Jennie married James Kendall, and after his death, Samuel Pitts. After 
the death of Mr. Hodson's second wife he married Hannah Jane Parker, and 
to this imion there were born four children: Mary, wife of Samuel Atkms; 
Rebecca became the wife of Jesse Branson; Martha married Nathan Carter, 
and Elmer, the immediate subject of this sketch. Hannah Parker, the 
mother of Elmer Hodson, was born in Rush county, Indiana, February 17, 
18^9 and died in Clay township, this county. May 3. 1904- 

Elmer Hodson received his education m the schools of his home town- 
ship and earlv in life started to work on his father's farm. When he be- 
came of age his father gave him a farm of his own, and on this place he has 
spent his entire career. He is recognized as one of the most scientific farm- 
ers of the county, keeping abreast of all the latest methods in agriculture 
and having his farm well supplied with all the necessary farming machinery 

and accessories. , , . re 1 

Mr Hodson was married to Luella Hadley, the daughter of Samuel 
1 and Locadia (Brown) Hadley, and to this marriage has been born one 
child Vera Tane, who is now attending Earlham College, and w.ll graduate m 
Tune' 1Q14' The parents of Mrs. Hodson were both natives of this sta e, 
her ' father's birth ha^■ing occurred m Morgan county wdiere he 
.pent his entire life. He was a farmer and at the time of his death he was 
the owner of two hundred and forty acres of land. To Mr. and Mrs. 
Samuel J. Hadley were born six children : Cornelius, who first married Elsie 

Kng, aid after' her death, Mattie , and after her deatl. Marcella 

Clark- Elva married Joshua Hunt: Sarah Jane married Harry Thompson, 
Luella, the wife of Mr. Hodson; Vinton, deceased: Elizabeth .named .^Iva 
R Shirley, of Indianapolis. . . 

Mr Hodson has been a Republican in politics from conviction, feeling 

that in the principles set forth by that party the welfare c,f the nation would 

Te best conserved His intercut in politics has been that of the public-spint d 

c ti.en, who has a civic interest in his country's w^elfare, but is not particularly 

once ned in holding office himself. He is a member of the Friends church 



464 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

at Alill Creek and JMrs. Hodson belongs to the society at Amo, both ])emg 
interested in all matters pertaining to the welfare of the community in which 
they live. Mr. Hodson's upright life and courteous dealings have won for 
him the esteem of a wide concourse of friends throughout the locality in 
which he has spent his life. 



ROBERT OPIE CHRISTIE. 

The history of many Indiana families takes us back into colonial times, 
and it is a source of satisfaction to trace the history of a family from the 
seventeenth century up to the present time. The Christies of Hendricks 
county trace their ancestry back to colonial times, where they have found 
that the original founder of the family was educated for a Catholic priest. 
However, his relatives objected so vigorously to his espousal of the Catholic 
faith that he left England and came to this country, where he could worship 
as he pleased. He settled in \^irginia and in the course of time married a 
woman of refinement and culture who lived in the city of Philadelphia. To 
this marriage there was born one son, James, who, in turn, married and be- 
came the father of William, the founder of the Hendricks county branch of 
the Christies. James Christie enlisted in the Revolutionary War when a very 
young man and served for seven years. James married Sarah Lemond and 
settled in Eranklin county, Virginia, on the James river, where he lived until 
1803. He then moved to Lincoln county, Kentucky, and a year later he 
moved with all his family to Shelby county, in the same state, where he taught 
school until his death. William was the third of the ten children born to 
James Christie and wife. 

William Christie was born in Virginia, August 25, 1786. and was six- 
teen years of age when his parents moved to Kentucky. Therefore, he had 
but little chance for schooling, although his father taught all of his children 
to read and write at home. He acquired a fair knowledge of law and, being a 
wide reader, he was well versed in the topics of the day. On August 15, 1805, 
when only nineteen, he was married to Sarah Miles, who died a year later, 
leaving an infant daughter, Mary. On February 20, 1810, William married 
Elizabeth Miles, a cousin of his first wife. At the opening of the War of 
1812 he enlisted and served throughout as the captain of a pack-horse com- 
pany. After his return from the war he lived on a farm in Kentucky and 




ROBERT O. CHRISTIE 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 465 

held some minor offices in his county. In the fall of 1836 he moved to Hen- 
dricks county. Indiana, where he lived until his death. May 30, 1878. He 
died in the faith of the Regular Baptist church, to which he had belonged 
for nearly seventy-five years. 

Robert Opie Christie, the great-grandson of William Christie, was born 
December 4, 1872,' in Marion township, Hendricks county, Indiana. His 
parents were James P. and Amantha Ann (Yowell) Christie, his father 
being born in this county on November 19, 1844. James P. was married in 
1 87 1 to Amanthis Ann, the daughter of Walker and Eliza (Duvall) Yowell. 
Walker Yowell was a native of Virginia and came west to Kentucky with 
his parents when he was a small boy. He grew to manhood and married 
in that state. In 1854 he came to Hendricks county and located on the farm 
in Marion township where James Christie now lives. He lived on this farm 
of eighty acres until his death, in 1902, at the age of eighty-four, having 
been born in 181 7. His wife was born in Kentucky and died in Marion 
township, this county, in 1885, at the age of fifty-six. 

James P. Christie was the second son of eight children born to John 
and Lucinda (Bush) Christie. John was a native of Kentucky, being born 
in that state January 15, 18 16, and dying in this county October 8, 1888. 
He was farmer and carpenter all his life, and took quite an interest in public 
affairs. He was a Democrat and was elected supervisor several times in his 
township. His wife was a native of Kentucky, but came to this county 
when a small girl with her parents and was reared in the county. She died 
in 1891. Mr. and Mrs. John Christie were the parents of eight children: 
William P., James, Thomas J., Sarah Elizabeth (deceased), Lemon M., John 
Wesley (deceased), Frank Douglass and George Washington. 

James P. Christie spent his boyhood days on his father's farm, receiving 
his schooling in the district schools of the neighborhood. He worked on his 
father's farm until he was twenty-eight and then moved to his present farm 
of one hundred and eighteen acres. He has been a road supervisor for the 
past thirty years. His wife, Amanthis Ann Yowell. was born m Kentucky 
in 185 1 and has lived in this county since she was four years of age. To 
James P. Christie and wife have been born three children: Robert O., the 
subject of this sketch; Mrs. Beatrice Hadley and Herbert D. 

Robert O. Christie was educated in the schools of his home township 
and then spent three terms in the Central Normal College of Danville. He 
started farming on his present farm, which is a part of the old homestead 
(30) 



466 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

farm. In addition to a general system of farming, he specializes in cattle 
breeding, raising Shorthorn and Dnrham cattle for the market. He has a 
fine herd on hand at all times and is an expert judge of cattle. He is re- 
garded as one of the best stock raisers in central Indiana, and is rapidly 
coming to the front as one of the leading cattle experts of the state. 

Mr. Christie was married on October 9, 1895, to Clara Rogers, the 
daughter of Chilin and Sallie (Clay) Rogers. Her parents are natives of 
this county and are now living retired at Amo, Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. 
Christie have had two children, but both died in early childhood, Gladys R. 
at the age of six and Ruth at the age of two and a half. 

In his political relations, Mr. Christie has always voted the Democratic 
ticket, believing in the principles advocated by that party. He is a member 
of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and has been a member of the 
Friends church since he was seventeen years of age. He is now an overseer 
in the church. His wife is a member of the Christian church at New Win- 
chester. Mr. Christie is a genial man and has always been a hard worker. 
He is a man who has favored all civic enterprises which might help the com- 
munity and because of his public spiritedness he is justly regarded as one of 
the representative men of the county. 



CLARENC E C. WHIC KER. 

The best history of a community or state is that wdiich deals most with 
the lives and activities of its people, especially of those who, by their own 
endeavor and indomitable energy, have forged to the front and placed them- 
selves where they deserve the title of progressive men. In this brief review 
will be found the record of one who has outstripped the less active plodders 
on the highway of life and achieved a career surpassed by few of his con- 
temporaries, a career of marked success in agricultural affairs and a name 
which all men who know him delight to honor owing to his upright life and 
habits of thrift and industry. 

Clarence C. Whicker, the son of Frederick and Louisa S. (Duley) 
Whicker, was born in Clay township, Hendricks county, Indiana, January i, 
1859. His father was also a native of this county, his birth having occurred 
in Clay township on February 24. 1833, and he spent his entire life in the 
county of his birth, his death occurring on November 22, 19 13. Mrs. Fred- 
erick Whicker was born near Flemingsburg, Kentucky, November i, 1832, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 40/ 

and died March 27. 1868. The paternal grandfather of Clarence C. Whicker 
was born in Salem, North Carolina, April 3, I794, and died October 29, 
1853. He married Elizabeth Cosner, daughter of John and Abigail (Pike) 
Cosner and to this union were born the following children : Mrs,_Dorinda 
Stanley Mrs. Eliza Cosner, John C, Louis, James, Abigail, Mary, Luretta 
■(^;;hr;^arried Parnell Kenndl), Frederick (father of the subject), Eliza- 
beth, Allen (who married Amanda West), Sarah, who died unmarried. The 
Whicker family are very fortunate in having their family history traced 
back in an unbroken line for five generations. James Whicker, the great- 
grandfather of Clarence C. Wliicker, was born near Liverpool, England,* 
February 16, 1765, and died in Salem, North Carolina. His second wife, 
Mary Dean, was born July 25, 1770, and died at the age of one hundred and 
thn-e at Salem, North Carolina, and to this union there were born six chil- 
dren: Sarah, born April 10, 1780; Benjamin, June 20, 1784; William, 
March I, 1789; James, January 13, I79i ; Frederick, April 3, I794; Eh, July 
23, 1803. John Cosner, the maternal grandfather of C. C. Whicker, was 
born May 8, 1768, and died December 15. 1849- He married Abigail Pike, 
who was born October 3, 1770, and died January i, 1861. To Mr. and Mrs. 
John Cosner were born ten children: Nathan, born August 29, 1793; Mary, 
January i, 1795 ; Elizabeth, Mav 5, 1 797 ; Anthony, born April 7, 1799; John, 
January 18, 1804: Sarah, January 21, 1801 ; William, January 11, 1806; 
Lovey, May 26, 1808; Hannah, June 10, 1811 ; Peggy, May 21, 1814. 

Frederick Whicker received his common school education in the district 
schools of his township and worked on his father's farm until the latter s 
death, which occurred when the son was nineteen years of age. He then went to 
farming for himself and soon afterward bought a farm of forty acres m 
Clay township, this county. He was a very successful farmer and m the 
course of a few years had one hundred and sixty acres of good farming land. 
In the spring of 1861 he moved to Ben Davis, remaining there until October, 
1875 when he returned to Franklin township, Hendricks county, and agam 
resumed farming, and here he continued to reside until twelve years before 
his death when he retired from active work and removed to Stilesville. this 
countv, where he died November 22, 1913- In the spring of 1858 Frederick 
Whicker married Louisa S. Duley, and to this union there were born two 
children, Clarence C, the subject of this review, and Franz F.. of Franklin 
township The subject's maternal great-grandparents were Zadock and Su- 
sanna (White) Dulev, whose families had been located in Virginia for two 
and a half centuries. Eventually they moved to Fleming county, Kentucky, 



468 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



where their deaths occurred. Their children were as f ohows : John, single; 
Hiram, who married Sophia Northcut ; Charley, who also married Sophia 
Northcut ; Henry married Martha Mershon ; Susan, the wife of Henry Sweet; 
Jane, single; Ann, the wife of James Wilson; Polley, the wife of Thomas 
Money. Of these. Henry Duley, the subject's grandfather, was born April 
4, 1800, and died July 2, 1846. On January 6, 1825, he married Martha 
Mershon, who was born January 11, 1804, and died July 16, 1881, and their 
children were as follows: America, single; John C, born September 7, 1828, 
who married Heba Hord ; Louisa S., the subject's mother; Frances, wife of 
Philip Pratt; Henry C, born September 26, 1836. married Athalinda Red- 
mond; William, born July 14. 1830, married Malinda Wood. Daniel Mer- 
shon, the father of Mrs. Martha Duley, was of French Huguenot descent, 
though a resident of Virginia, where he married Efifie Hamilton. Their chil- 
dren were as follows : Susan married Jesse Turner ; Martha married Henry 
Duley ; Sallie married James Jones ; Eliza became Mrs. Allsup ; Fannie mar- 
ried Washington Wills ; Benjamin married Miss Gorganay ; Eli married Miss 
Bell; James married and died young; Cornelius died young. In 1868 Mrs. 
Louisa Whicker died, and subsequently Mr. Whicker married Martha A. 
Robinson, the daughter of John and Martha Robinson, and to this union one 
child was born, Mildred Mary, who died October 10, 1881. Mrs. Martha 
A. Whicker was a daughter of John and Martha A. (Hughes) Robinson, 
of Kent county, England. She was born at Covington, Kentucky, September 
9, 1844. and died at Stilesville Ma}- 10, 1914, in the seventieth year of her 
age. She joined the Methodist Episcopal church in 1886 and, until her health 
failed, was a regular attendant of church and Sunday school. 

Clarence C. Whicker attended his first school in Marion county, Indiana, 
near Ben Da\'is, but his school advantages were very limited. However, he 
has kept apace with modern improvements in agricultural work and on the 
current topics of the day, so that he is now able to discuss intelligently the 
leading current events. He worked on his father's farm until 1897, when 
he married and Ijegan farming on his own account, locating then on his 
present place, known as the John Grimes farm, on the Amo and Stilesville 
road. He first bought one hundred and sixty acres in 1892, to which hel 
added one hundred acres in 1896, and all but about thirty-five acres is in a 
high state of cultivation. In 19 10 he built the splendid fifteen-room residence 
and has made many other permanent and substantial improvements. He 
carries on general farming operations, also giving proper attention to live 
stock. In addition to a diversified system of farming he engaged in stock 
raising and was successful from the first in this line of work. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 4D') 



Mr Whicker n,arried Iva Wallace on April 20, 1897. the daughter ot 
Thomas' L. and Alanmnza (Kirkham) Wallace, of Tipton cotmty, this state, 
and to this imion there have been born two children, Lotus and Glance 
Crista Mrs Whicker's parents are natives of Indiana, her father having 
been born in Tipton county, and her mother in Morgan county, and they 
were the parents of three children, Victoria, the wife of Orm L. Osborne, 
and they have two children, Carodine and Blythe; Cora marned Elvm Mc- 
Clelland, and has two children, Emil and Doris. 

Mr Whicker has allied himself with the new Progressive party because 
he feels that it offers the best solution for all those evils which beset our na- 
tion today. He and his wife take an active interest in the various affaii^of 
the neighborhood in which they live which seek the ptAlic welfare Mrs_ 
Whicker is a loyal and consistent member of the Methodist Episcopal church 
at Stilesville As a farmer Mr. Whicker has been very successful, having 
devoted all his energies to agricultural pursuits and has met with the suc- 
cess which he merits. He is a practical and methodical farmer and has al- 
wavs given his personal attention to the various details of his farm work 
with the result that he has an envial^le standing in the community because 
of his abilitv and success in his chosen vocation. He has been success ul in 
the accumulation of material wealth, being the owner of two hundred and 
sixtv acres of fine farming land in Franklin and Clay townships in this 



county. 



JOHN J. DUGAN. 



It has been often said that the versatility and virility of the American 
people have been brought about largely by the continual introduction of new 
elements through the assimilation of the better class of our immigrant pqxila- 
tion One small countrv beyond the seas has furnished its full quota of 
desirable citizens, and the brilliant thought and quick wit of these genttanen 
are proverbial. Not a few of our most brilliant statesmen and men of affairs 
have been either natives of "Ireland, the Beautiful Isle of the Sea, or were 
descended from sturdy Hibernian stock. One of the conspicuous successes 
of this character in Hendricks county is John J. Dugan. the son of Michael 
and Margaret (Hughes) Dugan. ,\,„„;,.an 

In some respects a true son of Erin, he ,s none the le,.s a loyal American 
and a Hoosier, being widely known and geueralh- respected in the coininunity 
in which he was born and bred. He. himself, is a native of Hendricks 



470 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

C()nnt\', having" first seen the hght of day upon his father's farm in Middle 
tfnvnship. on the 4th day of March, 1882. and since that day he has Hved in 
and worked loyally for the interests of this connty. His father, Michael, 
and his mother. Margaret Dugan, were both natives of Galway, Ireland. 
They came to America in their youth, Michael being but nineteen years of 
age when he reached this country. He immediately found an abiding place 
on a farm near Brownsburg, Lincoln township, this county. Later he came 
to Middle township and, by hard work as a farmer and frugal habits, came 
into possession of a large tract of land about four miles north of Pittsboro. 
Here the remainder of his life was spent, toiling diligently and intelligently 
for the sustenance of himself and his family, and also looking forward to 
his later years when he need no longer toil for necessities, but could enjoy 
the fruits of his labor. His faithful wdfe was an unfailing source of help 
and strength and to her efforts, in no small measure, his success is due. To 
them were born eight children, seven of whom are still living to carry out into 
the w^orld, for generations to come perhaps, the name and teachings of their 
father. These children are Martin, Katherine (Collins), Ellen, Delia, Mary, 
Patrick. John J., and Anna, w^hom death called. The devoted mother still 
enjoys the home of her youth, ably assisted in its management by her children. 
Michael Dugan w^as a firm adherent of the tenets of Jefferson, always voting 
the Democratic ticket. Though very progressive in his ideas and active in 
affairs touching the public welfare in his comnmnity, he aspired to no political 
office, finding ample field for his abundant energy in his immediate sur- 
roundings. 

His son, John J. Dugan, is one of the thoroughly progressive, repre- 
sentative men of the county. Abreast of the times and thoroughly informed 
on all c[uestions pertaining to the public welfare, his judgment is largely re- 
lied upon by many of the neighboring citizens. His education was received 
in the schools of the township, but he has never ceased to study. Like his 
father, he is a stanch Democrat, and was elected to the Legislature on this 
ticket at the election in 19 12, which ofiice he has filled with great credit, de- 
voting his energies to the service of the people as conscientiously as he has 
always worked for his own success. 

Mr. Dugan is one of the very successful farmers of the locality, caring 
for the homestead of his childhood, a tract of one hundred and sixty acres, 
which by its appearance shows the intelligent care it has received. Here he 
engages in general farming, devoting considerable attention to the breeding 
of live stock, particularly hogs, a large number of which are marketed by 
him yearly. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 47 ^ 

Mr. Dngan is unmarried and has taken no interest in fraternal affairs. 
He is a prominent member of the Indiana Democratic Club, and also a mem- 
ber of the St. Malachy Catholic church at Brownsburg. A man of wide 
acquaintance, sound judgment, decisive and straightforward in all his deal- 
ings, he stands as an exemplary citizen, one of the truly representative men 
of the county. 



VIRGIL S. WATSON. 

There is no more important factor in the history of a town than the 
newspapers, and it is often true that it is the newspapers of a town which are 
largely responsible for its prosperity. The influence of a good newspaper 
cannot be over estimated. In it the people read from week to week not only 
of the happenings of their own county and state, but news from all over our 
country and the world as well. Every weekly newspaper in every town of 
Indiana gives the main facts of the world's history from week to week. It 
places in the hands of the readers the most important events which happen 
any place in the world. No great invention is made which is not exploited 
in the newspapers. Everv newspaper now which depends upon the rural dis- 
tricts for much of its support prints from week to week a special page for 
the farmer Among the newspapers of Hendricks county which are doing 
their full share in advancing the interest of the state, there is no paper doing 
more brilliant work for the good of the county than the Brownsburg Record, 
which is now owned and edited by Virgil S. Watson. 

Mr Watson, the son of Thomas J. and Amanda (Wright) Watson, was 
born November 4, 1869. in Camden, Preble county, Ohio. His parents were 
both natives of Hendricks county, Indiana. The parents of both families 
came directly from Kentucky and were among the earliest settlers of this 
county Thomas J. Watson was a successful farmer in this county and was 
largely interested in the buying and selling of stock. He and his wife were 
the parents of three children, Virgil S. being the only one of the children now 

living 

Vir-il S Watson was educated in the common school of Middle town- 
ship, m Ais countv, and being a young man of intellectual ability it was 
natural that he shmild take up school teaching. He taught school m this 
county for three years and in the meantime he attended the Central Normal 
Colle-e at Danville, in order to equip himself for more successful work m 
the sc'hool room. However, in compliance with the wishes of his parents, he 



472 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



abandoned the school room, and remained at home to assist in looking after 
the business of his father's farm, where he remained until he was forty years 
of age, when he went to Lebanon, Indiana, where he became engaged in 
newspaper work, for the Indianapolis News. A year later he bought the 
Brownsburg Record, assuming the management of the newspaper on June 
lo, 1912. In politics he is a Republican. He runs a modern job printing 
plant in connection with his newspaper, and adds not a little to his annual 
income by his job work. He is prepared to do all sorts of job printing on 
short notice, and the excellence of his work brings him a continually increas- 
ing amount of business. 

Mr. Watson was married, June 29, 1904, to Angle Belle Herring, 
daughter of Phillip B. and America (Walker) Herring, and they are the par- 
ents of two children, Hazel Bernice and one son who died in infancy. They 
are members of the Methodist Protestant church and contribute liberally of 
their substance to its support. 

Mr. Watson is a man of high character and is giving the people of his 
community a paper which stands for the best interest of Brownsburg in ever}^ 
respect. He advocates all measures and movements which he feels will 
redound to the credit of his home town and be of benefit in any way to the 
citizens of the communitv. 



ALLEN WHICKER. 



Among the citizens of Hendricks county who have built up comfortable 
homes and surrounded themselves wnth large landed and personal property, 
none have attained a higher degree of success than Allen ^^''hicker. With 
few opportunities except what his own efforts were capable of mastering and 
with many discouragements to overcome, he has made an exceptional success 
of life and in his old age has the gratification of knowing he has the respect 
of the community in which he has resided all his life, and that it has been 
benefited by his presence and counsel. He is a link between the old days 
and the new, for his boyhood days were spent in truly pioneer conditions. 
Settling in a virgin wilderness, he helped his father to clear the forests, drain 
the fields and raise the first crops on some of the best land in Hendricks 
county. 

Allen Whicker, the son of Fred K. and Elizabeth (Kosmer) Whicker, 
was born two miles southeast of x\mo, Hendricks countv, Indiana, March 20, 




ALLEN WHICKER 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 473 

1837. His grandfather, James Whicker, was in the Revolutionary War. His 
grandmother, on his mother's side, was Abigail Pike, who lived to he ninety- 
six years of age. She was a great patriot during the Revolutionary days, 
and when the subject of this sketch was a small boy she told him many stories 
of the dark days of the Revolution. Her husband was a native of Germany. 
Mr. and Mrs. James Whicker, the grandparents of Allen Whicker, lived all 
their lives in North Carolina, and it was in that state that Fred K. Whicker 
was reared and married. Mr. and Mrs. Fred K. Whicker reared a large 
family of twelve children, six of whom were born in North Carolina and six 
in Indiana. They moved from North Carolina to Indiana shortly before 
Allen Whicker, the subject of this sketch, was born and located in the virgin 
wilderness south of Amo. Here they built a cabin of logs, with a puncheon 
floor and riven door, the entire building being erected without a nail. Wild 
game of all kinds was abundant in the woods, turkeys, squirrels, deer and all 
kinds of fur-bearing animals. In order to prepare the land for cultivation 
they cut down the magnificent oak, walnut and hickory trees and piled them 
in big heaps and burned them. Timber which was burned in those early days 
would now be worth several hundred dollars per acre at the present price of 
lumber. Fred K. Whicker died at the age of sixty-one and. his wife at the 
age of seventy-eight. 

Allen Whicker is the eleventh child in order of birth and the only one 
living of the twelve born to his parents. He has spent his whole life in this 
county. Fie attended the subscription schools in his boyhood days and re- 
ceived a limited education at the three-months terms, which was the length 
of the school year in his time. He continued to live and work on the home- 
stead farm until he was twenty-five years of age, when he married and 
bought forty acres of land of his own adjoining the homestead farm. He 
has been remarkably successful as a farmer and from time to time has added 
to his possessions until he is now the owner of five hundred and fifty acres 
of as fine land as can be found in the county. He has for many years made 
a specialty of cattle feeding and is recognized as one of the largest cattle 
feeders of the county. He has, in addition to his raising of cattle, also raised 
large numbers of horses and hogs for the market. 

^ Mr. Whicker was married October 30, 1861, to Amanda West, of near 
Amo, and to this marriage there have been born six children : Mary, the 
wife of John Bunny, of Amo; Lina, the wife of William Lewis Beasley; 
Nora, the wife of Frank Bersbow ; Simon, a merchant at Amo; Dennis, who 
lives near Indianapolis, and Otto, who now operates the home place. Mr. 



474 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Whicker retired in 191 3 from active farm life and divided his land among 
his children and now lives in Amo. His first wife died in 1901, and on May 
25, 1903, he was married to Mrs. Ruth (Masten) Shirley, who is a daughter 
of Mr. and Mrs. John Masten. Mrs. Whicker had a son, Walter Hodson, 
by a former marriage, who resides in Clay towaiship, west of Mr. Wicker's 
place. 

Mr. Whicker is a loyal member of the Baptist church of Amo and is a 
liberal supporter of its various activities. He is a man of sound judgment 
and sterling integrity and has made his success in life by strict attention to 
business, starting out with small capital, but a stout heart and wnlling hands, 
and he has risen to a place of prominence among the representative citizens 
of his county. Although he has been very successful in accumulating a 
goodly share of this world's goods, he has not neglected those finer and 
hisrher thines in life, but has always identified himself with all movements 
which tend to elevate the general welfare of the locality in which he has 
lived for so many years. 



FRANZ F. WHICKER. 



The office of biography is not to give voice to a man's modest estimate 
uf himself and his accomplishments, but rather to leave upon the record the 
verdict establishing his character by the consensus of opinion on the part of 
his neighbors, friends and fellow citizens. The life of the honorable sub- 
ject of this review has been such as to elicit just praise from those who 
know him best. This has been brought about because he has always been 
loyal to all trusts imposed upon him and has been upright in all of his dealings 
with his fellow citizens, at the same time lending his support to the advance- 
ment of any cause looking toward the welfare of his community. 

Franz F. Whicker, the son of Frederick and Louisa (Duley) Whicker, 
was born in Marion county, Indiana, January 15, 1866. The Whicker 
family has a very interesting history, but inasmuch as it is given in detail in 
the sketch of Clarence C. Whicker, elsewhere in this volume, it is not repeated 
here. 

Frank F. Whicker attended the common schools in Franklin township, 
this county, and the ncompleted his education by taking a course in the 
Central Normal College at Danville. .Vfter finishing his college work he 
returned to his father's farm, where he continued to reside until his marriage. 
He then began farming for himself, first starting out as a renter. He has 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 475 

been a successful farmer and stock raiser and today has one hundred and 
sixt}' acres of as hnc farming land as can be found in the county. He keeps 
his farm in a high state of cultivation and every thing in good repair at all 
times, thus making his farm one of the most attractive in the county. 

Mr. Whicker married Anna Stark, the daughter of W. J. and Amanda 
(Adams) Stark, and to this union there have been born three children, Fred 
J., Floyd L. and Mildred A. All of the children are still at home. Mrs. 
Whicker's parents were both natives of Missouri, her father being deceased 
(September 2, 1905) and her mother still living. Mr. and Mrs. Stark 
reared a family of ten children, Ella, Joseph, Anna, Samuel, Arthur, Everett, 
Floyd, Nora, Leslie and Jane. 

Fraternally, Mr. Whicker is a member of the Independent Order of 
Odd Fellows. In politics he is allied with the Republican party and has been 
a firm follower of the great leaders of that party. He has, however, never 
been a candidate of his party for any office, preferring to serve in the ranks. 
He and his excellent wife are both people of broad sympathies and take an 
intelligent interest in the welfare of those about them, and, because of their 
genial dispositions and high character, they enjoy a large popularity in the 
community where they have spent so many years. 



ELBERT M. MURPHY. 



The prosperous farmer whose history is here portrayed is a man who, 
by his own efforts, has worked his way from a modest beginning to a posi- 
tion of influence in his community. His life has been one of unceasing in- 
dustry and perseverance, and the systematic and honorable methods he has 
followed have won for him the confidence of his fellow citizens in Hen- 
dricks county, whose interests he has ever had at heart and which he has 
always labored to promote. As township trustee and as county commissioner 
for many years, he rendered faithful and efficient service to the citizens of 
the county. As a farmer he has shown by example what can be accom- 
plished by scientific agriculture, and his farm today may fairly stand as one 
of the best farms in every way in the county. 

Elbert M. Murphy, a fine type of the modern farmer, was born Febru- 
ary 6, 1863, in Franklin county, Indiana. His parents were Henry W. and 
Elizabeth (Howell) Murphy, his father being a native of Franklin county, 
his birth having occurred there in 1833. Henry W. Murphy married Eliza- 



476 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



I 



beth Howell, who was also a native of Franklin county, and they continued 
to li\e in that county until 1864, when they moved to Decatur county, this 
state. After a residence of sixteen years in that county, they moved to 
Marion county and settled on a farm south of Indianapolis, where they have 
since continued to reside. 

Elbert M. Murphy was reared in Marion county, Indiana, and married 
there in 1884 to Mary J. Miles, the daughter of John and Rosanna (Fowler) 
Miles. Her father was a farmer of IMarion county and died there when she 
was about six years of age. Her mother continued to reside on the farm 
until Mary, the wife of Mr. Murphy, grew to womanhood, and then moved 
to Indianapolis, where she now lives. To Mr. and Mrs. Murphy was born 
one child, Gladys E., in 1892, wdio died in 1893, ^t the age of ten months. 

After his marriage Mr. Murphy bought ninety-one acres of land near 
North Salem in this county and from time to time added to his holdings un- 
til he is now the owner of three hundred and sixty-eight acres in this county. 
When he first started farming in the county there were few^ improvements on 
his farm and they were of small value. He gradually improved his farm, 
built a fine, large barn and other outbuildings and has made a scientific study 
of farming efficiency, in order to accomplish the most with the least amount 
of labor. In other words, he uses his brains as well as his muscle, and the 
result has been xevy gratifying to him. He now has a fine home which com- 
pares very favorably with the best country homes in the state and adds greatly 
to the appearance as well as to the value of his farm. While he carries on 
a general system of farming, he makes a specialty of feeding live stock and 
has found this a very lucrative diversion from his regular farming. 

Mr. Murphy has been a life-long Republican, taking an intelligent in- 
terest in all political matters and an indication of his popularity in his town- 
ship is shown by his election, in the fall of 1894, to the office of township 
trustee, an office which he held for five years five months. In 1901 he 
was nominated by his party for commissioner of his district and was elected 
without any trouble w^hatever. Following his election, he was appointed on 
November i, 1901, to fill out the unexpired term of his predecessor, and then 
held office until the end of his term. He gave such excellent satisfaction 
that he was twice re-elected and held the office of county commissioner con- 
tinuously for ten years, his last term expiring" January i, 191 2. For this 
long period of ten years he advocated every movement which would benefit 
his county and fought against any measure w^hich he thought would be detri- 
mental to the best interests of his county. Mr. and Mrs. Murphy are mem- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 477 

bers of the ^lethodist Episcopal church of North Salem and take an active 
interest in all kinds of church work. Mr. Murphy is a trustee of the church 
and of the Methodist Episcopal Hospital of Indianapolis, and has been no 
small factor in the erection of that memorial to the Methodists of the state. 
Fraternally he is a member of North Salem Lodge No. 142, Free and Ac- 
cepted Masons. He is universally regarded as one of the most prominent 
and progressive farmers of the county and, judging by his achievements of 
the past, he promises to maintain his reputation for many years yet to come. 
He is well informed on all the current topics of the day and is a broad- 
minded genteel, highly respected man who has always stood high in the com- 
munitv of his residence. 



JACOB O. BURGAN. 

The history of Hendricks county, as an integral part of the great com- 
monwealth of Indiana, reveals the handiwork of many a great and noble soul 
who wrought heroically and unselfishly. Her splendid homes, her high- 
grade institutions, her happy, prosperous people speak volumes of some one's 
steadfastness of purpose, of some one's strength of arm, courage of heart and 
activity of brain. Among the men of this county who have been actively iden- 
tified with the commercial life of Lizton for many years, is Jacob O. Burgan, 
the present postmaster. Today we have a division of labor which was not 
dreamed of fifty years ago and in a small village there are frecjuently as 
many as two score occupations represented. Each man fills his particular 
part and the minister is no more important than the blacksmith, the teacher 
is of no more intrinsic value to the community than the section boss, and the 
barber performs as useful a mission in life of the community as any of the 
others. Society needs all of these professions and it would be impossible to 
determine the approximate value of each one to the general welfare of the 
community. 

Jacob O. Burgan, postmaster and merchant of Lizton, was born June 
17, 1865, in Eel River township, Hendricks county. His parents were Alex- 
ander and Pernetia (Toney) Burgan. Alexander Burgan was born in Floyd 
county, Virginia, January 20, 1825. The Burgan family originally came 
from Sweden and probably have as complete and detailed a family genealogy 
worked out as any family in Hendricks county. At the present they have 
the ancestral tree traced back to eight generations. The first Burgan of 
whom they have definite record was Jonathan, who was born in Sweden in 



4/8 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

1560. He had one son, John or Jonnie, who was also born in Sweden in 
1 601. John married in due course of time and had one son, Yerick, who 
was born in the land of his father in 1640. Yerick went to Germany, where 
he married and had one son. Jacob, who was born in that country in 1695. 
Jacob grew to manhood, married and had one son, by the name of James, 
who was born in Germany in 1744. James was the first one of the family 
to come to this country and settled in Maryland about the last quarter of the 
eighteenth century, where he married and had one son, Isaac, born in 1786. 
Isaac grew to manhood, went to Virginia, married and had one son by the 
name of Alexander. Alexander came to Hendricks county, Indiana, mar- 
ried here and became the father of Jacob O. Burgan, whose history is herein 
portrayed. 

x\lexander Burgan spent his boyhood days upon the farm which his 
father entered in Union township and, upon his marriage to Prenetia Toney, 
moved to his own farm of forty acres adjoining the old homestead farm. He 
lived on two or three different farms in the township and five years before 
his death he moved to Lizton, where he remained until he passed away Sep- 
tember 28, 1879. Alexander Burgan and wife were the parents of five chil- 
dren: John Wesley, who died in 1883; Tranum, of Indianapolis; Harvey, of 
Indianapolis; Jacob O., the subject of this review, and Mrs. Almanda Swift, 
of Kokomo, Indiana. 

Jacob O. Burgan was given a good practical education in the schools of 
his township and when twelve years of age moved to Lizton with his parents, 
where he has spent the remainder of his life. While still a young man he 
learned the barber trade and for sixteen years operated a barber shop in 
Lizton. He then engaged in the retail meat market and mercantile business 
which he continued up until his appointment as postmaster in 1904. He has 
been postmaster at Lizton for the past ten years, during wdiich he has given 
conscientious attention to the duties of this official position. 

Mr. Burgan was married September 10, 1902, to Margaret, the daugh- 
ter of John and Sue ( Vandever) Halfaker. John Halfaker was a native of 
Johnson county. Indiana, but several years ago moved to Hendricks county 
and settled in Middle township where he owns a fine farm about two miles 
north of Pittsboro. Mrs. Halfaker is a native of Boone county, Indiana. 
Mr. and Mrs. Halfaker are now living at Pittsboro. 

Mr. Burgan is a member of the Knights of Pythias and he and his wife 
are members of the Pythian Sisters. He was also a member of the Improved 
Order of Red Men. Politically, he has always been a Republican and has 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 479 

been interested in the activities of his party. He and his wife are both 
members of the Christian church of Lizton, to which they give freely of their 
means. Mr. Burgan has Hved a successful and honorable life and has exer- 
cised those qualities of generosity, hospitality and loyalty to friends, with 
the result that he is a man who is much admired and esteemed by all with 
whom he comes in contact. 



GEORGE ORE. 



To write the personal records of men who have raised themselves from 
humble circumstances to positions of responsibility and trust in a community 
is no ordinary pleasure. Self-made men, men who have achieved success by 
reason of their personal c[ualities and left the impress of their individuality 
upon the business and growth of their place of residence and affect for good 
such institutions as are embraced in the sphere of their usefulness, un- 
wittingly, perhaps, built monuments more enduring than marble obelisk or 
granite shaft. Of such we have the unquestionable right to say belongs 
the gentleman whose name appears above. 

George Orf, the son of Adam and Catherine Orf, was born in Hamilton 
county, Ohio, September 24, 1863. His parents died when he was very 
young and he was reared in an orphans' home and for this reason knows 
very little of his family history. He came to Hendricks county when a small 
boy of five years and made his home with Addison Hadley, remaining there 
until he was nineteen years of age. He then went to Butler county, Ohio, 
where he worked on a farm for three years, after which he returned to 
Hendricks county, Indiana. Until 19 10 he rented farms, being very suc- 
cessful as a renter and making a very satisfactory tenant. In 1910 he pur- 
chased his present farm of forty acres in Clay township, which he is now 
improving in every way and bringing to a high state of cultivation. 

George Orf was married September 11, 1890, to Hattie Henderson, 
the daughter of Alpheus and Maria (Lancaster) Henderson, and to them 
have been born the following children: Lucy, Claude, Elizabeth, Chloe, 
Vera, Kenneth, Dorcas, Ruth, Ernest A., deceased, and Georgia. Lucy is 
the wife of Hurley Rector and has one child, Mark. Mrs. Orf's parents had 
a family of six children, William, Hattie, James C, Sarah, Jesse and Mary 
A. William married Minnie Cassidy; Hattie is the wife of the subject of 
this sketch; Joseph married Eva Kersey; Jesse married Mattie Sanders; 



480 HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 

Sarah died in infancy; Mary became the wife of Fred Cassidy. Mrs. 
Orf s father died May 23, 1907. Mrs. Orf's grandparents were both natives 
of North Carolina and had a family of three children. James Alpheus, 
Marinda and Clark. 

Mr. Orf is a Republican and takes an active interest in local politics, 
although he has never been a candidate for any public office. He is a mem- 
ber of the Improved Order of Red Men and in his religious faith is an ad- 
herent of the Friends church of Danville. He is a fine example of the self- 
made man. who. starting out with nothing, by the sheer force of will and 
determination rears a family to a life of usefulness and becomes an im- 
portant factor in the welfare of the community. This he has accomplished 
because he has been upright in all of his dealings and willing to do his share 
in the life of the community and because he has done this he has won the 
respect and sincere regard of all of those with whom he has been associated. 



JACOB L. KURTZ. 



The best title one can establish to the high and generous esteem of an 
intelligent community is a protracted and honorable residence therein. Jacob 
L. Kurtz, one of the best known and most highly esteemed men of Hen- 
dricks county, Indiana, has resided in this locality all his life and his career 
has been a most commendable one in every respect, well deserving of being 
perpetuated on the pages of a historical work of the nature of the one in 
hand. Like his sterling father before him, he has been a man of well-defined 
purpose and never failed to carry to successful completion any work or enter- 
prise to which he addressed himself. Beginning life in a new country and 
under many unfavorable auspices, he let nothing deter him and before the 
lapse of many years he had a fine farm under cultivation. Knowing that the 
country was destined to take a high rank in the productive and rich localities 
of the North, he applied himself very closely to his work and waited for the 
future to bring its rewards, and today he is one of the substantial men of his 
county. 

Jacob L. Kurtz, who is now living retired in Danville, was born on 
July 22. 1854, in Putnam county, this state, the son of Henry F. and Mar- 
garet (\''annice) Kurtz, both of whom were natives of Kentucky. Henrv F. 
Kurtz came to Putnam countv. Indiana, with his father from Kentuckv. and 




JACOB L. KURTZ 



I 



IIFNDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 481 

lived in that county until his marriage and in Hendricks county the remainder 
of his life. Henry Kurtz served in the Civil War as a member of the Ninety- 
ninth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry and gave three years of his life 
to that memorable struggle. On July 22, 1864, on the tenth birthday of his 
son, Jacob L., he was taken prisoner and was held seven months, four months 
being spent amid the horrors of Andersonville prison. Upon his return from 
the war he settled in Marion township, this county, where he lived until his 
death, June 10, 1913. His wife died on May 28, 1913. Mr. and Mrs. Henry 
Kurtz were the parents of eight children : Caroline Francis, the wife of 
John F. Underwood, of Danville; Jacob L., the immediate subject of this 
sketch; Eliza, the wife of James A. Hadley, of Danville; William H., who 
died in infancy; Jennie, the widow of Charles Hadley, of Danville; Charles, 
whose present home adjoins the old homestead in Marion township; Oscar, 
a farmer of the same neighborhood in this county, and Wilbert, who died in 
infancy. 

Jacob L. Kurtz received his common school education in the district 
schools of Marion township and lived the life of the ordinary farmer's boy 
until he grew to manhood. He worked on his father's farm until he was 
twenty-five years of age, when he married and began to farm for himself 
on the farm adjoining his father's farm. Here he continued to live until his 
removal to Danville, on August 15, 19 13. Mr. Kurtz was very successful 
in his farming operations and when he left the farm in the fall of 1913 he 
left behind him a record of fifty years' splendid service as one of the leading 
agriculturists of the county. He kept apace with modern methods of agri- 
culture and introduced the latest improved machinery and as a result his farm 
was one of the most highly improved and best equipped farms in the county. 

Jacob L. Kurtz was married January 12, 1881, to Lucy Tinder, of this 
county, daughter of William and Catherine Tinder, and to this union there 
were born five children, three of whom are living, Everett, an attorney in 
Miami, Florida, and Asa and John, farmers of this county. His first wife 
died December 9, 1886, and on August 15, 1888, Mr. Kurtz was married to 
Jennie Tinder, a sister of his first wife, and to this union there has been born 
one son, Lawrence Stanley, who is now a student in the high school at Dan- 
ville. 

Mr. Kurtz has always been afifiliated with the Republican party, but has 
never taken an active interest in the deliberations of this party. In his re- 
ligious faith he has adhered to the Presbyterian church, and at the present tmie 
(31) 



482 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

is a ruling elder in that denomination. Mrs. Kurtz is a member of the Regu- 
lar Baptist church. Fraternally, Mr. Kurtz is a member of the Knights of 
Pythias, holding his membership at North Salem. Mr. Kurtz, who is now in 
the evening of life, can look back upon a career which was well spent in every 
particular. He can have the satisfaction of knowing that he has never done 
anything which would bring upon him the censure of his fellow citizens. 
Personallv, he is genial and unassuming and easily makes friends. He is a 
man of good habits and kindly impulses and is deservedly popular in the 
community where he has spent his whole life. 



JOHN F. STEVENSON. 



Among the representative citizens and prosperous farmers of Hendricks 
county, Indiana, is the gentleman whose name appears above, who is the 
owner of a fine landed estate in Marion township, and is carrying on the 
various departments of his enterprise with that discretion and energy which 
are sure to find their natural sequence in definite success, having always been 
a hard worker, a good manager and a man of economical habits, and, being 
fortunately situated in a thriving farming community, it is no wonder that 
he stands today in the front rank of the agriculturists of this favored locality. 

John F. Stevenson, the son of Patton and Elizabeth (Ragland) Steven- 
son, was born in 1852 in Marion township, Hendricks county. Indiana. His 
father's birth occurred in Kentucky in 1798, and after reaching maturity he 
came to Hendricks county, Indiana, settling in Marion township, near New 
Winchester. Patton Stevenson was married three times, his first marriage 
occurring before he came to Indiana, and to this union there were three chil- 
dren born, all of whom are deceased, Vincent, Mrs. Sallie N. Pierson and 
Morgan. After the death of his first wife. Patton Stevenson married Cath- 
erine Brandenburg, and to this marriage were born three children, Tolliver, 
deceased; Squire and Mrs. Susan Ann Graham. His second wife died and 
he afterwards married Elizabeth Ragland, a native of Kentucky, and to his 
third marriage were born six children. Patton, deceased ; Elsie Jane, de- 
ceased ; Mrs. Pattie Graham ; George Howard ; Mrs. Cassandra Flynn, de- 
ceased, and John F.. the immediate subject of this sketch. Patton Ste^-en- 
son was a quiet, hard-working farmer, who accumulated an estate of over 
three hundred acres of excellent land in Marion township. He was a mem- 
ber of the Missionary Baptist church and in his church affiliations he was 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 483 

both consistent and faithful. Pohtically, he was a Democrat, but was never 
active in the councils of his party. 

John F. Stevenson received his early education in the district schools of 
his home neighborhood and lived at home until his marriage^ which occurred 
in 1875, at which time he was united to Paulina Harris, the daughter of 
Thomas W. and Eliza Jane (Stephenson) Harris. Her father was a native 
of Kentucky and came to Putnam county, Indiana, with his parents at the 
age of four years, settling in Jackson township. William Harris came from 
Kentucky at an early date and entered a large tract of land from the govern- 
ment in Putnam county, and his son, Thomas W., spent his entire life on this 
farm, his death occurring January 5, 19 10. He was one of the largest land 
owners in the county and had over one thousand acres at the time of his 
death. His wife is still living on the old homestead farm in Putnam county 
at the advanced age of eighty-four. Mr. and Mrs. Thomas W. Harris were 
the parents of three children, William, Paulina, wife of Mr. Stevenson, and 
Melinda, deceased. 

Mr. Stevenson began farming one mile south of his present farm and 
lived there for thirty-two years, coming to his present place on October 16, 
1907. His farm of nine hundred twenty acres, two hundred of which is in 
Putnam county, is one of the largest individual farms in central Indiana. 
He has brought it to a high state of cultivation and has improved it in every 
way until it is one of the model farms of the county. It is needless to say 
that he has been a successful farmer, since his place will bear witness to his 
ability along agricultural lines. He still has active charge of the manage- 
ment of his farm and takes an active interest in everything which pertains to 
the conduct of his large estate. 

Mr. Ste^'enson has long been a member of the Democratic party, but has 
never held any public office or evinced any desire along that line. His ex- 
tensive land holdings have necessitated his concentrating his attention upon 
his property interests with the result that he has had little time to mingle 
in politics. He and his wife are loyal and consistent members of the Mis- 
sionary Baptist church at New Winchester, and are generous and willing 
contributors to its support. Mr. Stevenson has always been a hard worker, 
and although he has been very successful along material lines he has never 
allowed his success in worldly affairs to blind him to the higher duties which 
he owes to society. Thus he has always been a supporter of all public-spirited 
movements in his community and all worthy enterprises enlist his hearty co- 
operation. Consequently he is highly esteemed by all of those with whom he 
has been associated. 



484 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

JOHN E. VESTAL. 

It is not an easy task to describe adequately a man who has led an emi- 
nently active and busy life and who has attained a position of relative dis- 
tinction in the community with which his interests are allied. But biography 
finds its most perfect justification, nevertheless, in the tracing and recording 
of such a life history. It is, then, with a full appreciation of all that is de- 
manded and of the painstaking scrutiny that must be accorded each state- 
ment, and yet with a feeling of satisfaction, that the writer essays the task 
of touching briefly upon the details of such a record as has been that of the 
honored subject whose life now comes under review. 

John E. Vestal, the son of Benjamin and x\nna Vestal, was born in 
Hendricks county, Indiana. His father also was a native of Hendricks 
county, his grandfather having come from North Carolina in the early his- 
tory of the state. The Vestals trace their ancestry back to colonial times and 
have even traced a direct descent back to the Vestals of old England. The 
mother of John E. Vestal was born in Hendricks county, and both his father 
and mother are still living at the hearty age of eighty years, making their 
home with their son, John E. Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin Vestal were the par- 
ents of five children: Willis S., born May 11, 1858, and died October 8, 
1875; Mrs. Alice Mills, born April 9, 1866, the wife of Elwood Mills, a 
farmer of this county; Benjamin Corydon, a farmer and stock raiser of 
Washington township, married Cora Belch ; Charles Louder, born Janu- 
ary 18, 1873, a farmer of Guilford township, married Sallie Parks and has 
one daughter, Esther. 

John E. Vestal received his early education in the district schools of his 
township, and early in life began to follow the occupation of a farmer. There 
is no angle to the agricultural profession which he does not understand, and 
has always made it a point to keep in close touch with all the latest ideas on 
farming. A glance at his fields of corn and wheat will convince the casual 
onlooker that he has been a successful farmer. On his farm of three hundred 
and sixty acres he raises all of the crops of this part of the state as well as a 
large amount of stock annually for the market. However, he has made a 
specialty of stock raising, as his father did before him ; his father had the 
reputation of being one of the best stock raisers in the central part of the state. 
His son is following in the footsteps of his father. 

Mr. Vestal was married December 28, 1887, to Antoinette Moore, the 
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John S. Moore, of Plainfield. 



r 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 485 

Mr. Vestal is a member of the Friends church and a generous supporter 
of its various activities. In his political relations he has always adhered to 
the Republican party, but has never been a seeker for any public office. How- 
ever, he was treasurer of Hendricks county in 1904 and 1905. Mr. Vestal 
is a man of vigorous mentality and strong moral fiber, and has achieved great 
success in his calling and is eminently deserving of the esteem in which he is 
held in the community where his entire life has been spent. 



JOHN T. LEE. 

It is always pleasant and profitable to contemplate the career of a man 
who has won a definite goal in life, whose career has been such as to command 
the honor and respect of his fellow citizens. Such in brief is the record of 
the well known farmer whose name heads this sketch, than whom a more 
whole-souled man it would be difficult to find within the limits of Hendricks 
county, where he has long maintained his home and where he has labored not 
only for his own individual advancement and that of his immediate family, 
but also for the improvement of the entire community, whose interests he has 
ever had at heart. 

John T. Lee, well known farmer of Brown township, Hendricks county, 
Indiana, who was born in this county on April 19, 1864, about three miles 
north of Plainfield, is of Irish parentage, being the son of John and Catherine 
(Dugan) Lee, both of whom were natives of county Galway, Ireland. John 
Lee (father of the subject) was bereft of both parents while still a boy and 
emigrated to America when twenty years old, landing at Quebec in Canada. 
He remained in the Dominion for one year, when he came direct to Hendricks 
county, Indiana, where he passed the remainder of his life. When first com- 
ing here he worked out among the farmers of the county by the month, and 
for three or four years after his marriage, in 1861, continued this mode of 
employment. Then, with the aid of a brother, he purchased a forty-acre 
farm near Tilden. There he lived for perhaps a couple of years, when he 
disposed of that land and bought the forty-acre tract where the subject of this 
sketch now makes his home. John Lee was energetic, thrifty and prosperous 
and to his original forty acres he added from time to time until at the time of 
his death he had accumulated one hundred and fifteen acres of excellent farm- 
ing land. His death occurred on July 4, 1879. preceding his wife by a num- 
ber of years, as her death took place on June 26, 1904. 



486 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

John T. Lee, subject of this sketch, received his education in the schools 
of Hendricks county. He was one of a family of six children and remained 
under the paternal roof until the time of his marriage, in iyo2, to Ellen E. 
Flynn, born in Marion county, Indiana, on April 15, 1870, the daughter of 
Patrick and Mary (Kelley) Flynn, both of whom were natives of Ireland, the 
former coming from county Roscommon and the latter from county Gahvay. 
They both came to this country when a1)Out seventeen or eighteen years of 
age, both landing in New York City. Patrick Flynn worked in New York 
for a few months and then went into New Jersey, where he was employed on 
a truck farm for seven and one-half years. Mary Kelley went direct to 
Philadelphia, ui)on landing in this country, where she worked for a short 
time and then went to Woodbury, New Jersey. It was there she and Patrick 
Flynn met and were married. They came to Indiana in 1857, settling in 
Marion county, where they remained one year, and then removed to Hend- 
ricks county, southeast of Plainfield, where for four years he worked on 
various farms for a share of the crops. He then returned to Marion county, 
where he purchased a .farm and lived there the balance of his life, his death 
occurring February 18, 1901. He outlived his wife, who passed away on 
July 13, 1888. It was on this homestead in Marion county that Ellen E. 
Flynn was born in an old log cabin, and there she lived until the time of her 
marriage, with the exception of one year spent in the city of Indianapolis. 

After Mr. Lee's marriage, he took his bride to his old home where he and 
his mother had lived for several years and where the subject is living at the 
present time. The farm is about six miles northeast of Brownsburg and 
is in an excellent state of cultivation. Mr. Lee, in addition to general farm- 
ing, pays considerable attention to a good grade of live stock, it being his 
belief that no strain is too good for general purposes. 

Politically, Mr. Lee has always given his support to the Democratic party, 
in the affairs of which he has always taken an active, though (juiet, part. 
His fraternal affiliation is with the Ancient Order of Hibernians and Ijt^th 
he and his wife are communicants of the Roman Catholic church. Mr. and 
Airs. Lee have but one child, a daughter. Mary Catherine, who remains at 
home with them. The family is one of the most highly respected in the 
community and Mr. Lee does his full duty as a citizen in all the affairs of the 
locality affecting the moral, social or material welfare of his fellow citizens. 
He is a man who makes friends and holds them l)y reason of his sterling 
worth. He is well known in Hendricks county and is eminently deserving of 
mention in a book of the scope intended in the present work. 



r 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 487 

ARTHUR SPEARS. 

In touching upon the life history of the subject of this sketch the writer 
aims to avoid fulsome encomium and extravagant praise; yet he desires to 
hold up for consideration those facts which have shown the distinction of a 
true, useful and honorable life — a life characterized by perseverance, energy, 
broad charity and well-defined purpose. To do this will be but to reiterate 
the dictum pronounced upon the man by the people who have known him long 
and well. 

Arthur Spears, a progressive farmer of Eel River township, was born 
February 28, 1865, on the farm where he is now residing, two and one-half 
miles northeast of North Salem, Hendricks county, Indiana, the son of Rob- 
ert K. and Jane (Trotter) Spears. Robert Spears was born near Danville, 
Boyle county, Kentucky, in 1834, and came to this county with his parents, 
John and Martha Spears, the year following. They located about two miles 
northeast of North Salem, where John Spears entered a large tract of gov- 
ernment land and farmed for the remainder of his life. He started in as a 
pioneer in every sense of the word, built a rude log cabin in the woods, 
cleared his ground and opened the way to civilization in this part of the 
county. He was a Whig in politics until the Republican party was formed 
in 1856, and then voted for the Republican candidates until his death. Rob- 
ert K. Spears was reared on this farm under these primitive conditions, and 
upon reaching manhood was married to Jane Trotter, the daughter of Isaac 
and Lucy (Simms) Trotter, natives of Virginia, who had come to this county 
in an early day. After his marriage Robert K. Spears followed the vocation 
of farming the rest of his life on the farm where Arthur now lives. He was 
a Republican in politics, was a trustee of his township and an active member 
of the Methodist Episcopal church. He died September 15, 1910, while his 
wife's death occurred January 10, 1891. Mr. and Mrs. Robert K. Spears 
reared four children, Adelia, deceased, who was the wife of William Dean, 
of North Salem; Arthur; Annie, deceased, who was the wife of Nathan 
Tucker, and Omar, who died at the age of thirty-two years. 

Arthur Spears has spent his entire life upon the farm where he is now 
li\-ing, with the exception of about ten years when he was a molder. At the 
age of twenty-three he went to Indianapolis and learned the molder's trade, 
and for the next ten years was employed at that trade in that city, Cincin- 
nati and St. Louis. He has also been in California for two years on a fruit 
ranch, but has alwavs considered this countv his home. He is the owner of 



4t^8 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

one hundred and eighty-seven acres of excellent farming land in this town- 
ship, two residences on his farm, excellent barn and silo, and all of the mod- 
ern improvements, machinery and accessories which constitute the success- 
ful farmer's equipment. 

Air. Spears was married September 13, 1896, to Anna Walton, who was 
born at Winterset. Iowa, on a farm, the daughter of Amos and Letitia 
(Gowin) Walton. Mrs. Spears" mother was born in this county and her fa- 
ther in Ripley county, this state. Her parents were married in Hendricks 
county and then went to Iowa, where they lived the remainder of their lives. 
The father is deceased, and her mother is now living at Adel, in that state. 
]\Ir. and Mrs. Spears are the parents of two children, Gerald and Mary, Mr. 
Spears is a man of progressive ideas and tendencies and has made a decided 
advancement in the location to which his energies have been devoted for so 
many years. As a citizen he is wide-awake and enterprising and a typical 
representative of the large and intelligent class of yeomanry which give 
character and stability to the body politic, and to which Indiana is so largely 
indebted for the proud position which she today occupies among her sister 
states. 



JOSEPH S. CARTER. 



Among the successful, self-made men in Hendricks county whose efforts 
and influence ha\e contributed to the material upbuilding of the community, 
Joseph S. Carter occupies a conspicuous place. Being ambitious from the 
first, but surrounded with none too favorable environment, his early youth 
was not especially promising, but, resolutely facing the future, he gradually 
surmounted the difficulties in his way and in due course of time rose to a 
prominent position in the commercial, agricultural and financial circles of 
his community, besides winning the confidence and esteem of those with 
whom he comes in contact, either in a business or a social way, and for years 
he has stood as one of the representative men of the locality honored by his 
citizenship. 

Joseph S. Carter, the son of William K. and Mary (Crouch) Carter, 
was born in Davidson county. North Carolina. August 30. 185 1. His grand- 
father was Richard Carter, a native of Scotland, who married Sarah Tigg. 
His maternal grandfather was Richard Crouch, a native of Germany. Rich- 
ard Carter came to America from Scotland when he was a lad of sixteen and 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



489 



settled in North Carolina. He was one of four brothers, and was a pioneer 
school teacher in North Carolina, dividing his time between farming and 
teaching. He was in the War of 181 2 and also in the Black Hawk War in 
1832, and lived to be over eighty years of age. The school building in the 
county in which he taught for so many years is still known as the Carter 
school, although there have been several buildings erected on the same 
ground, the present building being a structure of four rooms. Mr. and Mrs. 
Richard Carter were the parents of eight children, five sons and three daugh- 
ters. At the time of the discovery of gold in California three of the brothers 
removed to that state, where they have since made their homes. They have 
married, reared families in that state and have been very successful. Some 
of them have made visits back to the old home. William K. Carter, the 
lather of the immediate subject of this sketch, took part in the Mexican War, 
after which he returned to his home in North Carolina, where he followed 
the occupation of a farmer. He was for a number of years the overseer for 
a large plantation owner by the name of Joseph Spurgeon, and had seventy- 
five negroes under his charge. He did not marry until after he came back 
from the Mexican War, and after a number of years as overseer he engaged 
in farming on his own account. At the opening of the Civil War he enlisted 
in the Confederate army in Company I, Forty-second Regiment North Caro- 
lina Infantry, and served throughout the war. He took part in scores of 
battles in many states, having fought in the West at the battle of Vicksburg 
and in the East in the battle of the Wilderness. He was severely wounded 
in one of the last engagements of the war and never fully recovered from 
the efliects of this disabiity. After the close of the war he returned to his 
home in North Carolina and lived there until he was about fifty years of age, 
a highly respected farmer. Mr. and Mrs. William Carter were the parents 
of nine children, only two of whom are now living, Joseph S., the immediate 
subject of this sketch, and Mrs. Margaret Everhardt, of Thomasville, North 

Carolina. 

Joseph S.- Carter was reared in North Carolina and received his education 
at the Carter school, which has been mentioned, and Piney Grove and Wau- 
town, a suburb of Old Salem, North Carolina. At the age of nineteen he 
started out to seek his fortune and came to Hendricks county, Indiana, arriv- 
ing at Amo on the 24th day of November, 1869. He took employment with 
the farmers of the neighborhood and worked in this line for about three years, 
after which he bought forty acres of land south of Stilesville. this county, 



490 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

but did not move onto this farm. Later he purchased forty acres one and 
one-half miles south of Amo, and to this small beginning he has added 
acreage from time to time until he is now the owner of four hundred and 
fifty-five acres of fine farming land in the county. He has made a remark- 
able success as an agriculturist, and has gained a reputation as a feeder of 
stock which cannot be excelled in the county. He nas made a specialty of 
raising corn and hay and then feeding all of it on his farms. At one time 
he, in partnership with Jacob Phillips, had seven hundred hogs, which they 
were fattening for the market. This was in the year 1874, at the time of the 
famous grasshopper plague in Kansas, when they were able to buy hogs in 
that state at their own price. Mr. Carter has exercised wonderful judgment 
in all his financial transactions, with the result that he is now recognized as 
one of the most substantial farmers of Hendricks county. 

Mr. Carter was married on January 26, 1873, to Sarah J. Masten, of 
this county, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Manuel Masten, and to this union 
there have been born four children : Arthur L. married Maude Underwood, 
and now lives on a farm of one hundred sixty acres west of Amo; Charles 
Burton married Nellie Hazlett and resides on a farm one-half mile south of 
Amo; Lewis, who died in infancy, and Ada, who married William Everett 
Atkins, and they have one son, Howard Carter, four years old, who is the 
delight of his grandfather's heart. 

Mr. Carter now resides on the Masten property adjoining Amo on the 
south, where he has a fine modern home, with all the conveniences of the city. 
He was unanimously elected as a member of the town council of Amo and 
has taken a very active interest in the affairs of the town. He is a member 
of the Free and Accepted Masons and the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
lows. Tn his church relations he is affiliated with the Methodist Episcopal 
church of Amo and contributes liberally of his means to its support. 

Mr. Carter is a fine type of the self-made man, and although he only 
had twenty-five dollars Avhen he landed in this county, in 1869, he has, by 
thrift and economy, accumulated a very comfortable fortune. In addition 
to his heavy landed interests, he has a large amount of money loaned on 
mortgages. Mr. Carter is a genial man, pleasant to meet and has a host of 
friends throughout the county. He helped organize the First National Bank 
at Amo, Indiana, being a charter member and was a director. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 49 1 

ROBERT BELL. 

That the plenitude of satiety is seldom attained in the affairs of life is to 
be considered a most beneficial privation, for where ambition is satisfied and 
every ultimate end realized, if such be possible, apathy must follow. Effort 
would cease, accomplishment be prostrate and creative talent waste its 
energies in inactivity. The men who have pushed forward the wheels of 
progress have been those to whom satisfaction lies ever in the future, who 
have labored continuously, always finding in each transition stage an in- 
centive for further effort. Mr. Bell is one whose well directed efforts have 
gained for him a position of desirable prominence in the agricultural circles 
of Hendricks county, and his energy and enterprise have been crowned by a 
gratifying degree of success. 

Robert Bell is a native of this county, born on February 28. 1845, ""* 
what is now^ Lincoln township, being the son of Moses and Jane (Harbison) 
Bell, both of whom were natives of Ireland, coming to the United States from 
county Down about 1832. They entered eighty acres of government land 
about one mile south of Brownsburg, and after a few years they purchased 
from a Mr. Dunn forty acres which joined their farm on the east. Later on 
they purchased another eighty-acre tract about two miles south of the land 
they first owned, where Moses Bell passed the remainder of his life. Moses 
Bell was the son of John Bell, who died in Ireland, and it is thought his 
mother's maiden name was Jane Troutman, but this is not known positively. 
Moses Bell was one of the leading citizens of his day and community and 
deserved much credit for the station to which he attained. He arrived in 
Hendricks county a stranger from another land, without means, and at the 
time of his death he occupied an enviable place in the regard of those who 
knew^ him and had amassed considerable of this world's goods. He ever 
conducted himself so as to win the confidence and esteem of those with whom 
he came in contact, and throughout his life in this section he was always 
glad to endorse any movement having for its ultimate aim the betterment of 
the moral or material good of the community. He was a stanch supporter 
of the Republican party and took an active interest in the administration of 
that party's affairs. He filled one or two minor offices at different times, 
discharging his duties in a manner satisfactory to all. 

Robert Bell was one of a family of five children, himself being the only 
one remaining out of the family. John died in infancy and Isabelle, Eliza 
J. and Mary .V. died later in life. Robert Bell's mother died when he was 



492 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

but nine years of age, when the eldest sister assumed the duties of the home- 
keeper and acted m this role until her death. After that, the father made 
his home with the suhject. Mr. Bell remained at home until the time of his 
marriage, on .September .6. 1868, receiving under the careful guidance of 
h.s father instruction m the labor of husbandry. After marriage, he con- 
tinued to live on the home farm until the father's death, when he purchased 
property inBrownsburg and has since divided his time between the home „ 
town and the farm. 

Mrs. Robert Bell was Miss Mary A. Barlow before her marria-e a 
daughter of Theophilus and Susan A. (Moberly) Barlow. The Bariow 

amily were originally from Kentucky, but came to Indiana at a very early 
date m the state s history and settled in Hendricks county. They at one 

.me owned a very large tract of land about three miles south of Browns- 
burg. Mrs. tell was one of a family of nine or ten children and remained 
under her father's roof until the time of her marriage. To Mr. and Mrs 
Bell have been born ten children, three of whom died in infancy. CIvde W 
married Mary Cook and died February 7. 1905, leaving one child, a boy 
Faye A little daughter. Melvina. had preceded him into the life bevond 
Ltoyd S ^vent to Canada when a young man and there married a young lady 
who died when the.r child Robert was a year or two old. Llovd a'ld L son 
Kobert are living on a homestead in British Columbia. Grace J. and Ernest 
E. vvere twins; the latter never married and lives in Brownsburg. Grace T 
met her death when her father's home was destroyed bv a fire caused by e^ 
ploding gasoline. She left a young son Vance, who 'lives with his grand- 
father and IS a promising boy. attending high school in Brownsburg. Charles 
iL marned Ida Phillips, daughter of James and Melvina (Grav) Phillip: 
They reside ,n Brownsburg and have a family of three children, namelV: 
Mabel Eliza^,eth, Horace and Thom,as Grant. Nellie S. has been twice mar^ 

rle'ct wfr T f"'^! "■'' '■'°""' ■'"*="°" ^"^' "'''^" ' »-'«- ^he mar- 
ried Wa ter Roach. She was the mother of four children, one only by the 

Myrtle 7 " r' f T P""' "™-^' ^-^""' «™ -"' Lawrence' Roach. 

and Lstella C. and Clara P. were the names of two little daughters who died 
in intancy. 

Mr. Bell's religious affiliation is with the Presbvterian church, of which 
he IS an active and consistent member. He is a man of generous impulses 
and genial disposition, who readily makes friends and retains then, He has 
been a stalwart Republican ever since attaining hi.= majoritv and for his 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 49.^ 

party has served as road superintendent and road supervisor at different 
times. His conscientious discharge of the duties thus devolving upon him 
met the approval of all concerned. In addition to the general farming con- 
ducted by Mr. Bell, he has given particular attention to the breeding of short- 
horn cattle, and has been the most active stock buyer and shipper in the 
township for the past twelve years. For seven years he was in the farm 
implement business in Brownsburg and prides himself on the fact that his 
sales for one season have never been equalled in that town. Among other 
implements, sold that season, he disposed of thirty-eight binders and twenty- 
eight mowers, an enviable record truly. In common with all men of affairs, 
Mr. Bell has met with reverses at different times, but he has not permitted 
himself to be permanently handicapped by them, but has with renewed effort 
set himself to repair the breach. At the time of the death of his daughter, 
Grace, his town house was destroyed, at a loss of eighteen hundred dollars, 
and the same spring the house on the farm was also destroyed by fire. These 
material losses were small indeed to him when compared with the great loss 
which could not be replaced. Mr. Bell is a man of sterling qualities of 
character, patient and scrupulously honest in all the relations of life, hospitable 
and charitable, and he has gained the approval and high esteem of his fel- 
low citizens because of his upright life. Because of his earnest character 
and business success he is eminently entitled to representation in a work 
of the character of the one at hand. 



THOMAS KINNEY. 



A man's reputation is the property of the world, for the laws of na- 
ture have forbidden isolation. Every human being either submits to the 
controlling influence of others or wields an influence which touches, controls, 
guides or misdirects others. If he be honest and successful in his chosen 
field of endeavor, investigation will brighten his fame and point the way 
along which others may follow with like success. The reputation of Thomas 
Kinney, one of the leading citizens of Brown township, Hendricks county, 
Indiana, having been unassailable all along the highways of life, according 
to those who have known him best, it is believed that a sketch of his career 
will be of benefit to the reader, for it has not only been one of honor but of 
usefulness also. 

Thomas Kinnev, one of the most successful farmers of the county, was 



494 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

born not far from his present home on April 4, 1869, the son of John and 
Bridget (Miilhn) Kinney, both of whom were natives of county Galway, 
Ireland. Thev emigrated to America early in their married life and came 
directly to Indiana, where for a short time they lived in the city of Indian- 
apolis. John Kinney then secured work on a farm in Marion county and in 
this way passed about seven years. By judicious saving he was able, at that 
time, to invest in a farm and found a tract of forty acres on the Hendricks- 
Boone county line that was what he desired, the farm being located in Hen- 
dricks county. The family lived there for two years, and it was during that 
period that the subject of this sketch was born. That tract was then dis- 
posed of and a farm of one hundred and ten acres in Brown township, Hen- 
dricks county, was then purchased, being the land on which subject now re- 
sides. John Kinney was a man eminently deserving of a great amount of 
credit, for through his own perseverance and untiring energy he was able 
to accumulate a considerable property, at the same time making a good 
living for his family, and so ordering his life as to win the confidence and 
respect of his fellow men. His death occurred in 1909, his wife having pre- 
ceded him by ten years. They reared a family of three children, only one 
of whom married. Thomas Kinney has remained unmarried, and so has his 
sister Delia, the two of them making their home in the old homestead. Owing 
to the ill health of Miss Delia Kinney, her brother has a man and his wife 
to assist them about the place, the wife looking after the housework and the 
husband doing the duties about the farm, Mr. Kinney acting merely as an 
overseer. 

Mr. Kinney conducts his business in such a manner as to attest his ex- 
cellent business ability and in addition to the general farming carried on, he 
also gives particular attention to his stock, believing that care and attention 
to this phase of farm work greatly repays the time and labor expended. He 
also takes great pride in the quality of grain produced and to this end is a 
student of proper methods of agriculture along modern scientific lines and 
the proper rotation of crops. His farm shows the thought and care put 
into it and is one of the up-to-date farms of the county. 

Politically, Mr. Kinney is an ardent supporter of the Democratic party 
and ever since attaining his majority he has taken a deep interest in public 
affairs. While not desiring offce for himself, his influence has ever been 
considered by those seeking that honor, as he has ever been desirous of see- 
ing the right party in the right place. Both he and Miss Delia are com- 
municants of the Roman Catholic church and their lives are consistent with 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 495 

its teachings. Mr. Kinney is quiet and unassuming in his manner and be- 
cause of his success in the material affairs of Hfe, his influence in local mat- 
ters and the unblemished character which he bears, there is accorded to him 
the fullest measure of popular confidence and esteem throughout the com- 
munity. 



JOHN WALSH. 



Though several years have passed since the subject of this sketch was 
transferred from the life militant to the life triumphant, his personality is 
still fresh in the memory of many of the citizens of Hendricks county, and 
especially Brownsburg, where the latter years of his life were spent. Be- 
cause of his many excellent ^iersonal qualities and the splendid and definite 
influence which his life shed over the various communities in which he lived 
and which he labored so earnestly to upbuild in any way within his power, 
it is particularly consonant that specific mention should be made of him in a 
work containing mention of the representative citizens of the county. A man 
of high moral character, unimpeachable integrity, persistent energy and 
excellent business judgment, he stood "four square to every wind that blew" 
and throughout the locality where he lived he occupied an enviable position 
among his fellow men, by whom he \\as uni\-ersally esteemed. 

John Walsh was born in county Galway, Ireland, in March, 1835, being 
the son of John and Hannorah Walsh, both of whom were natives of that 
county and passed their lives therein. The subject came to America in 
1863, coming direct to Hendricks county and locating at Plainfield, which he 
considered his home for many years, while hiring out at farm work. He 
later purchased eighty acres of land three miles north of Brownsburg, where 
he lived for ten years. He then disposed of that tract and rented a farm 
two miles south of Brownsburg. where he made his home for two years, 
later purchasing property in the town of Brownsburg, where he passed the 
remainder of his life, his death occurring September 7, 1910. After lo- 
cating in Brownsburg, he engaged in the grocery business and later in the 
saloon business for some time, continuing therein until his retirement from 
active business pursuits. 

On February 14, 1874, INIr. Walsh was united in marriage with Mary 
Ann Fahy, who was born March 17, 1862, in Franklin county, Ohio, being 
a daughter of Edward and Margaret (Hart) Fahy, both of whom were born 
in county Galway, Ireland. Edward Fahy first came to America about the 



496 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

year 1853. and after living" here for a while he returned to his native land, 
where he remained for six years. He then returned to the United States and 
located in Brown township, this county, where he purchased a farm and pass- 
ed the remainder of his life. Mary Ann Fahy was one of a family of eight 
children, the others being Martin, Thomas, Margaret, Kate, Edward, Pat- 
rick and Bridget. 

To John Walsh and wife were born a family of seven children, namely: 
Nora, who is employed as saleswoman in a store in Brownsburg; Margaret, 
who is Mrs. James Tarpey and lives on a farm in Brown township, this 
county. She is the mother of three daughters, Fanchon, Mary and Martha. 
The third child of the family was Mary, who died when small. Catherine 
is a teacher in the public schools of Hendricks county, being stationed at 
present in Brownsburg. John is an undertaker and is associated with the 
Evans undertaking" establishment in Brownsburg. Two children out of this 
family, Edward and Vina, remain at home with the mother. The entire 
family are communicants of the Roman Catholic church, and stand high in 
public estimation by reason of their sterling worth and many excellent 
qualities. AVhile John Walsh's life on earth has closed, he still lives through 
the lives of the children he sought in every way to rear to perfect manhood 
and womanhood. 



JACOB LOCKHART. 

The gentleman to a review of whose life the reader's attention is here 
respectfully directed is recognized as one of the energetic, well-known farm- 
ers of Hendricks county, who by his enterprise and progressive methods has 
contributed in a material way to the advancement of the locality where he 
lives. As a mere lad of sixteen he joined the army during the Civil War and 
served- his country gallantly and faithfully for two years. In the course of 
an honorable career he has been successful in the manifold lines to which his 
efforts have been directed and, enjoying distinctive prestige among the rep- 
resentative men of his community, it is eminently proper that attention be 
called to his achievements and due credit be accorded to his worth as an en- 
terprising citizen. 

Jacob Lockhart, probably the youngest soldier who went to the fron) 
during the Cixil War. and now a prosperous farmer of Eel River township, 
was born April 14, 1847, ^^^ ^^^^ ^^st of Martinsville, Morgan county, In- 
diana. His parents were Jorman and Leah (Robbins) Lockhart, the father 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 497 

a native of Kentucky, who came to Indiana Nvith his parents, who settled near 
Martinsville. His father had at one time been a man of means in Kentucky, 
but lost a great deal of his wealth by trving to help some of his friends. 
When Jorman Lockhart became of age in Morgan county he entered forty 
acres of land from the government and there lived and died. Jacob, whose 
history is here given, was but three years of age when his father died. Leah 
Robbins, the mother of Jacob, was born in 1825, in North Carolina, the 
daughter of Jacob and Barbara Robbins. Her parents came to Indiana from 
North Carolina, making the overland trip in wagons, and about the year 1830 
settled in the north part of Marion township, Hendricks count5^ where her 
father bought forty acres of land with a log house on it, and on this farm 
he died, leaving his widow and their children. 

After the death of Jorman Kockhart his widow was left with four 
children, William Thomas, Jacob, James M. and Sarah E. Mrs. Lockhart 
then moved to her father's farm in Marion township, this county, and here 
they lived until after the war. William Thomas served in the war in Company 
H, Seventh Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, until June, 1864, when 
his arm was shot off in the battle of the Wilderness and he was compelled 
to return to his home. He died in 1873. James farmed in Eel River town- 
ship until his death, in 1913. Mrs. Lockhart died about 1894. 

Jacob Lockhart was reared in Hendricks county, and when a stripling 
youth of sixteen he enlisted on November 25, 1863, in Company I, Ninth 
Indiana Cavalry, One Hundred and Twenty-first Regiment, under General 
Wilson, and participated in all the marches and engagements under his com- 
mand until his final muster in 1865. His service extended through Tennes- 
see, Alabama and Mississippi and. although he was never wounded, he had 
many a narrow escape from being captured. 

After the close of the war Mr. Lockhart returned to his home in Hen- 
dricks county and, although still only a boy of eighteen, he bought a little 
patch of ground of about five or six acres, on which he worked for two 
years, selling out in 1867. Afterwards he bought thirty-two acres near his 
present home and a part of his present farm. Here is where the fine quali- 
ties of Mr. Lockhart are made manifest. He showed indomitable courage 
and pluck, which is characteristic of successful men and which has brought 
him that prosperity which he now enjoys. He went into debt for the thirty- 
two acres, but, with heart to work, saved his money and, by good manage- 
ment, persevering industry and thrift, soon had the farm paid for and had 
(32) 



498 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

purchased more land adjoining. He now married and he and his good wife 
worked hand in hand, ]\Ir. Lockhart attribnting no small part of his snccess 
to the faithful help which his wife rendered him in their early struggles. He 
kept adding to his land holdings until he is now the owner of six hundred 
and eighty-one acres of fine farming land. This does not include the eighty 
acres which he gave to his son. He raises a large amount of live stock and 
pays especial attention to sheep and cattle, having at one time had nine hun- 
dred sheep and lambs on his farm. 

Mr. Lockhart was married on March 5, 1870, to Adeline Davis, the 
daughter of Walter Davis. Mv. and Mrs. Lockhart are the parents of four 
children, Oscar and Ruby, who are still with their parents, and twins, who 
died in early childhood. The family are members of the Christian church. 
Mr. Lockhart is a loyal and faithful member of the Grand Army of the Re- 
public, which was organized in 1866 at Decatur, Illinois. Tt is interesting to 
note that the first national encampment of the Grand Army of the Republic 
was held at Indianapolis in 1866. and that today there are more than five 
thousand Grand Army posts in the United States. Mr. Lockhart believes 
that a good recipe for success is to attend strictly to one's own business, keep 
your credit good and refrain from intoxicating liquors and tobacco of all 
kinds. He has endeavored at all times to live such a life as to keep himself 
free from the censure of the world. He has been a man of domestic tastes 
and has been devoted to his wife and family, and yet has taken his full share 
in the life of the community in which he has lived. 



ALBERT L. WEBB. 



Fealty to facts in the analyzation of the character of a citizen of the 
type of Albert L. Webb is all that is required to make a biographical sketch 
interesting to those who have at heart the good name of the community, be- 
cause it is the honorable reputation of the man of standing and affairs, more 
than any other consideration, that gives character and stability to the body 
politic and makes the true glory of a city or state revered at home and 
respected abroad. In the broad light which things of repute ever invite, 
the name and character of Albert L. Webb stand revealed and secure and, 
though of modest demeanor, with no ambition as a leader of men, his 
career has been signally honorable and it may be studied with profit by the 
young entering upon their life work. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 499 

Albert L. Webb, for sixteen years postmaster for the town of Browns- 
burg, Hendricks county, Indiana, was born January 29, 1863, the son of Ira 
C. and Lorinda (Shirley) Webb. Ira C. Webb was born in New York 
state and when about sixteen years old came westward, with his mother, to 
live with a brother of hers who had located near Pittsboro, this county. 
There he made his home until the time of his marriage to Lorinda Shirley 
daughter of William P. and Lydia (Pugh) Shirley, both of whom were 
natives of North Carolina who had located in Marion county, this state. 
Albert L. Webb was the only child of this union and when one year of age 
was taken to live with his mother's parents, where he remained until his 
marriage on February 7, 1883, to Florence Messick. 

After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Webb farmed for a year or two and 
in 1S97 Mr. \\'ebb was appointed postmaster at Brownsburg, which position 
he held until July i, 1913. In 1904 he opened and operated Brownsburg's 
first hotel, which was located in the Hunter block, he and wife operating 
it in connection with the postoffice. At the end of four years, they dis- 
posed of this hostelry and Mrs. Webb took charge of a stationery store 
which had been run in connection with the postofiice. In 191 3, after giving 
up the postoffice, Mrs. Webb enlarged her store when the postoffice was 
moved across the street from its former location. She deals in stationery 
and notions and is succeeding admirably. 'Sir. Webb is a painter and paper- 
hanger by trade and has followed that occupation for the past thirty years 
in addition to his business interests elsewhere. 

Mrs. Webb was born November 11, 1864. in Greencastle, Indiana, the 
daughter of Samuel and Armilda (Lynch) Messick. They were both natives 
of the Hoosier state. Samuel being born in Ladoga, a son of John Messick, 
who was an extensive landholder near Ladoga. Mrs. John Messick died 
when her son, Samuel, was quite a small infant. Armilda Lynch, mother 
of Mrs. Webb, was a daughter of Colonel John and Lucy Lynch and was 
twice married. Her first husband was John ]\IcGinnis and to their union 
were born four children, William, Lucy, Elizabeth and Ella, the first born 
dying in infancy. William McGinnis was operator for the Big Four Rail- 
road Company in Brownsburg for eight years. After the death of John 
McGinnis, his widow married Samuel Messick, by whom she had one child. 
Florence, the present Mrs. Webb. When Florence was fifteen years old, 
her mother departed this life. To Mr. and Mrs. Webb have been born five 
children, namely: Raymond A., who is engaged in insurance business; 
Eugene, who graduated from high school in 191 3 and now operates a tailor- 
ing and pressing establishment in Brownsburg; Neil, who is still in school; 



500 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Chester, the second child, died at the age of nineteen months, and the fourth 
child died when twelve weeks old, having never been named. 

Mr. Webb is a member of the respected order of Freemasonry and is 
also affiliated with the Knights of Pythias. He is interested in the welfare 
of the Christian church, of which Mrs. Webb is a member, and takes a 
\erv active part in the affairs of the church. She also belongs to the Order 
of the Eastern Star, the Daughters of Rebekah and the Pythian Sisters. 
She filled the chair of district deputy grand chief in the last named order. 
Mrs. Webb is a woman of many excellent cpialities and no small business 
ability and numbers her friends on a large scale. She is a lady of splendid 
personal qualities of character and liked by all who know her. Mr. Webb 
has become w^ell and most favorably known throughout the community for his 
loyalty to the truth, his uprightness in business, his public spirit and his 
friendly disposition. He and his wife are among the most influential and 
popular citizens of their community, being abreast of the times in every way 
and always willing to give their time and substance, if need be, to further 
any movement looking to the betterment of the locality where they reside, 
religiously, socially or educationally. 



JAMES W. RUSE. 

It is with pleasure that the biographer has an opportunity to place be- 
fore the readers of this work the life record of the honorable gentleman 
whose name initiates this paragraph, for he is deemed eminently worthy 
of representation along wnth the best and most industrious citizens of Hen- 
dricks county, owing to the fact that he belongs to the energetic and enter- 
prising class that has made this favored section one of the most noted and rich- 
est in the great Hoosier state and has the added credit of having raised him- 
self to this enviable position solely through his own efforts, his early years 
having been a time of hardship for him. Enjoying distinctive prestige as a 
farmer, he has achieved marked success, while his practical intelligence, 
mature judgment and sound business principles have had much to do in 
moulding public sentiment in the community where he has long maintained 
his home. 

James W. Ruse is a native of the state of Ohio, born in Perry county, 
near New Lexington, on January 19, 1857, the son of George and Clara 
(Brown) Ruse. The mother died wdien the subject of this sketch was but 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 5OI 

five years of age, leaving two other children besides him. The father kept 
the little family together for two years, until the beginning of the Civil 
War, when he enlisted in Company C, Sixty-second Regiment Ohio Volun- 
teer Infantry, serving throughout the rel^ellion. Previous to becoming a 
soldier, he took as his second wife Maggie L. McPherson. When the sub- 
ject of this sketch was seven years old, his father bound him out to one 
Charles VanNatta, of Perry county, Ohio. Mr. VanNatta was a good master 
to him, permitted him to go to school whenever possible, and gave him good 
training in agricultural work. When he became of age and the period of his 
bound service was over, he received from Mr. VanNatta the customary 
compensation. This was the gift of a horse, saddle and bridle or its equiva- 
lent in money. Mr. Ruse chose the money, receiving one hundred and 
twenty-fi\-e dollars. For a year thereafter he worked for one of the farmers 
in that community and at the end of that time was married and came to 
Indiana, locating in Marion county. He was there but a short time, when 
he removed to Hendricks county where he rented the Arbuckle farm, an 
eighty-acre tract, and lived thereon for four years. He then moved in with 
the Prebster brothers on their farm a mile and a half west of Brownsburg. 
They were unmarried and too old to work their farm and Mr. and Mrs. 
Ruse cared for them and their farm for four years. During that time they 
bought one hundred and six acres adjoining the Prebster land and built a 
home on it and after the four years with Prebsters spent three years on 
their own farm. They then moved back with the Prebster brothers and re- 
mained with them for thirteen years, a total of seventeen years, or until 
the death of Christian Prebster. They then moved onto their own farm, 
taking Reuben Prebster into their own home and cared for him until his 
death, a year and a half later. In consideration of the care given by Mr. 
and Mrs. Ruse, Reuben left the Prebster farm tO' Mrs. Ruse. Mr. Ruse 
then bought property in Brownsburg and built thereon a comfortable home 
where he has since resided. 

After the close of the war, George Ruse, father of the subject of this 
sketch, came to Indiana and settled in Marion county for a time, later coming 
to Hendricks county. He took up his residence near Brownsburg and there 
passed the remainder of his life, his death occurring on September 21, 1906. 

On January 28, 1880, Mr. Ruse was united in marriage with Jennie 
Nixon, daughter of George and Elizabeth ( Diller) Nixon, both being natives 
of Ohio. Her mother died when Mrs. Ruse was a little girl of six years and 
she remained in the care of an elder sister until her tenth vear, when she 



502 IIKNDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

went to make her home with an aunt, remaining there four 3^ears. She 
then l)eg"an earning her own way in the world, but continued to make her 
home with her sister until the time of her marriage to Mr. Ruse. To their 
union has come one child, George E., born February 4, 1883. He is married, 
his wife being Elva Lowder, daughter of James Lowder, of Brown town- 
shij), this county, and they have two interesting children, Raymond L. and 
Lois Irene. The sul)ject takes just pride in these two children, dividing his 
time between them and the work of his farm. He has always been con- 
sidered one of the best farmers in his section, conducting his business in 
a manner to w-in and retain the respect and confidence of his fellow men, 
and the success he has won has come to him as a result of untiring energy and 
wise management. 

Both Mr. and Mrs. Ruse are members of the A-Iethodist Episcopal 
church, being considered among the most earnest of its members. They give 
liberally of both time and means to further the cause of that society. Mr. 
Ruse takes an intelligent interest in the affairs of the community as af- 
fecting the educational, moral and material welfare of the people and gives 
his support to every worthy benevolent or charitable object. He has lived and 
labored to w^orthy ends and is one of the sterling citizens and representative 
men of his communitv. 



JOHN F. BROWN. 



It is proper to judge of the success of a man's life by the estimation 
in which he is held by his fellow citizens. They see him at his work, in 
his family circle, in church, hear his views on public questions, observe 
the operation of his code of morals, witness how he conducts himself in 
all the relations of society and civilization, and are, therefore, competent to 
judge of his merits and demerits. After a long course of years of such daily 
observation, it would be out of the question for his neighbors not to know 
of his worth, for, as has been said: "Worth makes the man" and "Actions 
speak louder than words." In this connection it is not too much to say that 
the subject of this sketch has passed a life of unusual honor, that he has 
been industrious and has the confidence of all who have the pleasure of his 
friendship. 

John F. Brown, well known citizen of Brownsburg, Hendricks county, 
Indiana, was born in Brown township, this county, in the part now known 
as Lincoln on November 4, 1854, being the son of Daniel and Polly N. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 503 

(Ballard) Brown, both of whom were natives of the state of Kentucky and 
were brought to Indiana in their childhood by their respective parents. Daniel 
Brown was the son of Daniel Brown. St., whose wife, Elizabeth (Short) 
Brown, was a native of Delaware. The father of Polly Ballard, mother 
of the immediate subject of this sketch, was Beverly Ballard, originally 
from Kentucky, a man well known in his community. Upon coming to 
Indiana, Daniel Brown, Sr., settled in Hendricks county, where he acquired 
government land in Brown township, about three miles east of Browns- 
burg, and there he passed the remainder of his life. He was one of two 
brothers who came at the same time to this locality and from them the set- 
tlement which became the town of Brownsburg got its name. Daniel Brown, 
Sr., was the father of a family of eleven children, among them being 
Daniel, Jr., father of the immediate subject of this sketch. Daniel Brown, 
Jr., remained under the parental roof, assisting his father in the work about 
the home place, until the time of his marriage. He then took up his abode 
on a farm near that of his father, and passed the remainder of his life 
there, his death occurring in February, 1862. The widow continued to live 
on the home place, surrounded and assisted by her children, and there her 
death occurred on March 23, 1883. She was the mother of eight children, 
four of whom died in infancy. 

After his mother's death, John F. Brown continued to reside on the 
home place and in 1886 was united in marriage with Dora B. Gore, daughter 
of Silas and Sarah (Barnes) Gore, the former of whom was a native of 
Virginia and the latter a Hoosier by birth, having been born in Shelby 
county. In 1904 Mr. and Mrs. Brown arranged to rent out their farm and 
took up their residence in Brownsburg. At that time he also purchased a 
farm on the edge of the town, three acres of which were within the corpora- 
tion, and there they lived for nine years, building their present home on Main 
street in 191 3. Mr. and Mrs. Brown were the parents of two children, one 
of whom died in infancy, the other being Grace, wife of Byron Ayres, son 
of John L. and Flla ( Gorham) Ayres. Byron Ayres was born in Browns- 
burg and has lived in or near there all his life, at present residing on the 
Gorham farm one mile east of Brownsburg. He and his wife have one 
child, Agatha Leona. 

Politically. Mr. 'Brown gives his support to the Democratic party and 
takes a deep and commendable interest in public affairs. He served as a 
member of the advisory board for a number of years, discharging th.e duties 
of that position in a way satisfactory to all. Mrs. Brown is a member of 
the Presbyterian church, in the affairs of which Mr. Brown also takes an 



504 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

interest, although not being a member himself. All throughout his life, Mr. 
Brown has given evidence of unflagging energy and ambition and has won 
for himself a competency, being possessed of his excellent home in Browns- 
burg and one hundred and thirty acres of the old homestead. He is a man 
of many praiseworthy traits of character, being scrupulously honest in all hi« 
dealings with the world, generous and pleasant, possessing rare fortitude 
and good judgment, advocating clean policies, wholesome living and honesty 
in business. Needless to add that such a man has a host of friends and stands 
high in the estimation of all who know him. 



GABRIEL NICHOLAS RUDD. 

Conspicuous among the representative men and public-spirited citizens 
of Hendricks county. Indiana, was Gabriel Nicholas Rudd, who died on 
January 8, 1913, at a time in his career when he was a most useful member 
of society. He made his influence felt for good in his community and was a 
man of such sterling worth that his name will be long remembered by those 
with whom he was closely associated. His life had been interwoven with 
the interests of the community in which he resided and his efforts were al- 
ways for the material, moral and intellectual advancement of the same. The 
well regulated life he led gained him the respect and admiration of all of his 
fellow citizens and the heritage he leaves to his widow and children is that 
of a life well spent in the service of his fellow men. 

Gabriel Nicholas Rudd was born May 9, 1873, '" ^his county and died 
January 8, 1913, his death being the result of injuries received in a railroad 
wreck at Terre Haute, Indiana. His parents were Jehu and Sarah (Lasley) 
Rudd, both of whom were natives of this county. Jehu Rudd received his 
education in his home schools and, after leaving school, worked on his 
father's farm until his marriage. Mr. and Mrs. Jehu Rudd were the parents 
of eight children : Norton, who married Josephine Osborn ; Orpheus, who 
married Anna Hastings; Thomas, who married Alice Adams; Zula, the wife 
of Oscar Smith; Gabriel, the immediate subject of this sketch; Ray, who 
married Alice Wright; Grace, who died at the age of eight years, and Erwin, 
who is unmarried. 

Gabriel N. Rudd received a good, common school education and from 
his boyhood up was a youth of more than ordinary seriousness, and was 
taught to look upon the better and brighter side of things. As a boy he knew 




GABRIEL N. RUDD 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 5^5 

what it was to work and when he was only fifteen years of age he came to 
Indianapolis and learned the box-making trade. He continued to reside in 
Indianapolis until two years after his marriage, when he moved to Clay 
township, Hendricks county, where he remained the rest of his life. As a 
farmer he was recognized as an up-to-date agriculturist, who kept fully 
abreast of all the latest advances in farming methods. 

Mr. Rudd was married on September 28, 1895, to Luella Kendall, the 
daughter of Harry and Mary Kendall, and to this union were born three 
children. Lottie Verenia, who died at the age of seventeen months; Eloise 
and Theodore. Mr. Rudd was very much attached to his family and was 
essentially a domestic man in his tastes. He was never happier than when 
seated by his own fireside, and the joys of conjugal bliss were made com- 
plete by the chatter of his little children and the gentle voice of his loving 

wife. 

Mr. Rudd was affiliated with the Republican party, but was never 
actively engaged in the campaigns of his party. He was a member of the 
Free and Accepted Masons at Indianapolis, belonging to Center Lodge. He 
and his wife were members of the Methodist Episcopal church at Amo, Mr. 
Rudd being a trustee at the time of his death. He always took an active in- 
terest in religious affairs, believing the church was the greatest single instru- 
ment for good in our country. He lived such a life that he could "wrap the 
drapery of his couch about him and lie down to pleasant dreams." with the 
assurance that his sleep was only to be an awakening in a better and brighter 
world. 



JAMES F. HARDIN. 

Clearly defined purpose and consecutive effort in the affairs of life will 
inevitablv result in the attaining of a due measure of success, but in fol- 
lowing out the career of one who has attained success by his own efforts there 
comes'' into view the intrinsic individuality which made such accomplish- 
ment possible, and thus there is granted an objective incentive and inspiration, 
while at the same time there is enkindled a feeling of respect and admira- 
tion. The qualities which have made Mr. Hardin one of the prominent 
men of Brownsburg have also brought him the esteem of his fellow towns- 
men, for his career has been one of well-directed energy, strong determmation 
and honorable methods. 



506 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

James F. Hardin, the present postmaster of Brownsburg, was born in 
Boone county, this state, on August 29, 1865, the son of William Elliott and 
Hannah Elizabeth (Lackey) Hardin, both of whom were natives of this 
state. William Elliott was born in Marion county and Hannah Elizabeth 
Lackey was born near Red Key. William Elliott Hardin was a son of Isaac 
J. Hardin, of Kentucky, and was one of a family of six children. The 
father was engaged in agricultural pursuits and young William Elliott re- 
mained at home until the time of his marriage, in the meantime receiving 
from his father instructions in the secrets of agriculture. After his marriage 
he lived in Marion county for a time and then moved to Boone county, 
where he had purchased an eighty-acre farm in the southeastern part of that 
county and there they lived for a few years. It was on that farm the im- 
mediate subject of this sketch was born and, when he was five or six years 
old. William Elliott Hardin traded that tract for a farm of sixty acres lo- 
cated about two miles north of the town of Lebanon. There he lived for 
some five or six years, when he moved to Lebanon and later back to Marion 
county to the farm of Isaac, his father, where they lived for some three or 
four years, or until the death of Isaac Hardin. William Elliott Hardin then 
moved to Clermont, near Indianapolis, when he remained for six years, en- 
gaged in the sawmill business. After selling that business, he moved to 
Brownsburg, where he passed the remainder of his life. His death occurred 
on October 25, 1893, being killed while working about a clover seed huller. 
He was a man of cjuite a mechanical turn of mind and after moving to 
Brownsburg he purchased a complete threshing outfit, in which he seemed to 
take much pleasure aside from the profit derived from the operation of same. 
His wife, Hannah Elizabeth, passed from this life in August, 1909. 

James F. Hardin was one of a family of seven children, the others 
being Isaac, Matilda J., Anna, Ella, Kinkley and Claude. James F. remained 
at home until the time of his marriage, assisting his father in his various 
ventures. After marriage he made his home in Brownsburg, but for ten 
years was on the road for the McCormick Harvester Company. He decided 
to settle down to a business which would permit him to be more at home, and 
decided upon the jewelry and optical business. He went to Indianapolis to 
learn his trade, often walking the distance in order to save the expense of 
travelling otherwise. He was diligent in his work and in a remarkably short 
time felt justified in attempting business on his own responsibility, and opened 
up a business in Brownsburg where he has continued uAtil the present, making 
for himself an excellent reputation in his chosen field of endea\'or. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 507 

On No\'eniber 3, 1895, Mr. Hardin was united in marriage with Maggie 
L. Cook, who was born November 23, 1871, in Brownsburg, the daughter 
of Nathan and Mary J. (Moses) Cook, both natives of Ohio, having been 
born near Hillsboro. When but fifteen years old, during the nation's hour 
of trial in the early sixties, young Nathan J. Cook enlisted as a drummer 
boy in Company A, Fifth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and served until the 
close of the war. However, he never served in the capacity in which he 
enlisted, for, being large for his age, he shouldered a musket and went to 
the front. Soon after the close of the war he was married in his native 
Ohio and not long after that brought his wife to Indiana, coming direct 
to Brownsburg where he was connected with the sawmill and lumber busi- 
ness. On October 12, 1898, the boiler in his sawmill exploded, killing him 
outright. The same explosion also blew out one side of the residence occu- 
pied by the subject of this sketch. Mrs. Nathan Cook lived some years 
after her husband, her death occurring on October 19, 1910. They had a 
family of six children. Those besides the wife of the subject are Cora, Glenn, 
Eveline, Lottie and Walter. Maggie L. remained at home with her parents 
until the time of her marriage to subject. Nathan Cook was considered 
one of the leading men of the town in his day and did much to advance 
its best interests, both morally, educationally and materially. He was active 
in local politics and served as town trustee for a term or two. His manner of 
life was such as to win the friendship of his fellow men and he retained 
their high regard. 

Mr. and Airs. Hardin have one son, James Gordon, who attends the 
grade school of Brownsburg. Mr. Hardin's political affiliation is with the 
Democratic party, in the administration of whose affairs he has ever had 
a keen interest. He has been one of the town's trustees for two terms and 
was town marshal for one term, serving seven years in all, and in the dis- 
charge of the duties this devolving upon him he showed a spirit of equity 
and broad-mindedness that stamped him as a worthy citizen. On July i, 
19 1 3, Mr. Hardin received the appointment as postmaster of Browns- 
burg, which position he now occupies. While not a member of any church, 
Mr. Hardin has been active in religious circles, and has done much to 
assist the local society of the Methodist Episcopal church, of which Mrs. 
Hardin is an earnest and consistent member. In all the elements of good 
citizenship, Mr. Hardin is all that a man should be and because of his 
genuine worth and the high personal character he possesses, he enjoys a well 
deserved popularity throughout the county. 



508 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

THOMAS MORAN. 

It was remarked by a celebrated moralist and biographer that "there 
has scarcely passed a life of which a judicious and faithful narrative would 
not have been useful." Believing in the truth of this opinion, expressed by 
one of the greatest and best of men, the writer of this review takes pleasure 
in presenting a few facts in the career of a gentleman, who, by industry, 
l>erseverance, temperance and integrity, has worked himself from an humble 
station to a successful place in life and won an honorable position among the 
well known and highly esteemed men of the locality in which he resides. 

Thomas iVIoran, well known farmer of Lincoln township, Hendricks 
county, Indiana, was born in Franklin county, this state, on January 27, 1870, 
the son of John and Bridget (Haley) Moran, both of whom were from 
county Galway, Ireland. As was quite a custom among young Irish sweet- 
hearts years ago, they would decide to try their fortunes in the new world, 
being unable to see much in the way of opportunity ahead of them in their 
native land. The young man would come to America first, and after he had 
attained a competence, or saw an opportunity for his sweetheart to make her 
own way for a while, he would send for her and they would usually marry 
soon after her arrival. In this way John Moran and Bridget Haley became 
emigrants to America. The former came direct to Hendricks county where 
he worked out by the day among the various farmers around Brownsburg. 
After his marriage, he moved to Franklin county for a couple of years, and 
it was while they lived there that the subject of this sketch first saw the light. 
John Moran had saved all the money he possibly could aside from actual 
living expenses, and was enabled to purchase a small farm in Hendricks 
county, ^^•here he lived the remainder of his life, his death occurring in July, 
1905. The wife still lives, making her home with her son, Patrick C. Mr. 
Moran was a stanch Democrat, having aligned himself with that party upon 
accjuiring American citizenship, and the family were communicants of the 
Roman Catholic church. They had a family of five children. Besides the 
subject, there were Morton, Patrick, Sarah and Delia. 

Thomas Moran remained under the parental roof until sixteen years of 
age, having attended the schools of their home district, and at that time 
hired out as a day laborer. He continued in this line of work for about 
sixteen years, when he purchased sixty acres of land, making a payment of 
nine hundred dollars down on same. On that property he lived for about 
five years, when he traded it in on his present farm of one hundred and 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 509 

sixty acres, situated about three and one-half miles east of Brownsburg. 
There he engaged in general farming, raising about the average crops, de- 
voting particular attention to thoroughbred short-horn cattle and Poland 
China hogs, in all of which he is signally successful. 

On February i6, 1909, Mr. Moran was united in marriage with Bridget 
Corliss, l^orn February i, 1868, in this county. She is a daughter of 
Thomas and Julia (Collins) Corliss, both of whom emigrated from county 
Galway, Ireland, when young and unmarried. He came first to this county 
and after their marriage they bought eighty acres of land near Brownsburg 
and to this they added from time to time until at their death they were 
possessed of some three hundred acres. Mrs. Moran remained with her 
parents until she was about twenty-five years of age, when she entered 
domestic service and continued to make her own way in the world until 
the time of her marriage. To Mr. and Mrs. Brown has been born one 
child, a daughter. Marguerite Mary. Both Mr. and Mrs. Moran are com- 
municants of the Roman Catholic church and, politically, Mr. Moran is af- 
filiated with the Democratic party. 

On his farm Mr. Moran is enjoying life to the full, realizing, as the public 
at large is realizing more than ever, that the farmer today is to be envied 
rather than his condition deplored, as was at one time the case. Mr. Moran's 
life has been one of unceasing activity and perseverance and the notably 
systematic and honorable methods he has followed have won for him the un- 
bounded confidence and regard of all who have formed his acquaintance. He 
has worked his way from an humble beginning to his present station, which 
fact renders him the more worthy of the praise that is duly accorded him by 
his fellow men. 



SMITH R. DAVIS. 



Among the strong and influential citizens of Hendricks county the record 
of whose lives have become an essential part of the history of this section, 
the gentleman whose name appears above occupies a prominent place, and 
for years he has exerted a beneficial influence in the localities honored by his 
residence. His chief characteristics are keenness of perception, a tireless 
energy, honesty of purpose and motive and every-day common sense, which 
have enabled him not only to advance his own interests, but also largely con- 
tribute to the moral and material advancement of the community. 

Smith R. Davis, than whom no resident of North Salem, Hendricks 



5IO HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

County. Indiana, enjoys a higher degree of popular confidence and regard, is 
a native of Hendricks county, born in Eel River township on the 29th day 
of July, 1845, and is the son of Benjamin Franklin and Jane (Russell) 
Davis, being their only child. Benjamin Franklin Davis came to Hendricks 
county in 1829, when six years of age, with his parents, Enoch and Nancy 
(Hart) Davis. They came from near Mount Sterling, Kentucky, to which 
locality Enoch Davis' father had gone from his native state of Virginia, 
taking with him his bride. Enoch Davis was the father of a family of nine 
children, of whom Benjamin Franklin was one. After coming to Hendricks 
county, he obtained a tract of government land about a mile and a half north- 
west of North Salem, where he passed the remainder of his life. In this same 
locality his son, Benjamin Franklin Davis, settled at the time of his marriage 
to Jane Russell in 1844, purchasing a tract of land near his father's home. 
Howe\er. he did not remain on this place long, but during his life bought 
and sold several pieces of ground in and around North Salem, in which town 
his death occurred in 1909. Jane (Russell) Davis, his wife, w'as a daughter 
of Silas Russell and was one of a family of nine children. She was a 
native of Kentucky and in 1842 came to Hendricks county with a neighbor, 
thereafter, imtil the time of the marriage, making her home with her broth- 
er. Smith Russell, wdio came to this county some time before. 

Smith R. Davis remained under the parental roof until the time of his 
marriage to Jane C. Brown, in 1866, shortly afterwards purchasing the 
farm adjoining his home. Jane C. Brown was the daughter of George M. 
and Martha (Dermott) Brown, and her death occurred in 1873. She left 
one child, Benjamin Marshall Davis, who is professor of nature study and 
agriculture at the Miami University at Oxford, Ohio. Benjamin Marshall 
Davis is married and had one daughter, Catherine L., who died at the age of 
eighteen years. In 1875 Mr. Davis took as his second wife Martha (Robbins) 
Kesler, daughter of John and Lydia (Parsons) Robbins, and to their union 
has ])een born one child, Lydia Jane, who is now the W'ife of Urbin L. Will- 
iams, son of Alexander M. and Martha (Griggs) Williams. Lydia Jane and 
L^rbin L. Williams have one child living, Rodger Davis Williams. All are 
residents of North Salem. 

Politically, Mr. Davis gives his loyal support to the Republican party, 
being active in the affairs of same. He was appointed as township trustee 
of Eel River township and served for two terms, 1887 ^o 1889, and was 
again elected, serving from 1900 to 1905. Since removing to North Salem 
he has been active in the party's affairs, as related to that city, and is at pres- 
ent serving as town clerk and treasurer of North Salem. His fraternal 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 5 II 

affiliations are with the time-honored body of Free and Accepted Masons 
and also the Knights of Pythias. Both Mr. and Mrs. Davis are members of 
the Order of the Eastern Star, and both hold church membership with the 
Christian chnrch, doing all within their power to further the interests of that 
society. It was in 1890 that Mr. Davis removed his family tt) North Salem 
and disposed of his farm holdings in 1900. since which time he has devoted 
his time and energies to the political work devolving upon him and in the 
conduct of the affairs of his home. 

Mr. Davis is a veteran of the Civil W^ar, having served toward the close 
of the war as a corporal in Company H, One Hundred and Thirty-second Regi- 
ment Indiana Volunteer Infantry. His father, who was also an officer, bemg 
lieutenant in Company F. Fifty- fourth Regiment Indiana Volunteers. How- 
ever, the father, Benjamin Franklin Davis, was not able to finish the cam- 
paign, having contracted pneumonia soon after the company went into ser- 
vice and being thus incapacitated. 

Mr. Davis is a man whom to know is to admire, for he has led a most 
exemplarv life, and has sought to do his duty in all relations with his fel- 
low men, being a man of honor, public spirit, charitable impulse and un- 
swerving integrity and enterprise; consequently, he is eminently deserving 
of mention in a history of his county, along with other well known and 
representative citizens. 



THE BROWNSBURG STATE BANK. 

The history of banking in Indiana goes back to the year 18 14, when 
the Territorial Legislature of Indiana passed an act providing for a central 
bank, with fourteen branches. The Constitution of 181 6 provided for a 
bank, part of whose stock should be held by the state of Indiana, and this 
continued in effect until the adoption of the new Constitution of 1851, since 
which time, the state has had no interest in any bank. The banks of Indiana 
have passed through many crises and during the internal improvement era 
of Indiana, many of them were forced to surrender their charters. Since 
185 1 the Legislature of the state has passed many laws providing for the 
organization of banks and at the present time the banking system of Indiana 
is founded upon as good a statutory basis as can be found in any of the states 
of the Union. 

The Brownsburg State Bank was organized April i, 1908, with the fol- 
lowing officers: Joseph A. Tharp, president, and John L. Marsh, cashier. 



512 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

The bank has had a very prosperous career since its organization and at the 
close of the fiscal year, October 21, 191 3, it issued the following statement 
of its financial condition: Resources — Loans and discounts, $102,945.90; 
overdrafts, $138.52; bonds and securities, $4,592.00; banking house, 
$4,000.00; furniture and fixtures, $3,000.00; other real estate, $1,466.92; 
due from banks and trust companies, $26,847.52; cash on hand, $7,094.90; 
cash items, $5,518.60; current expenses, $710.01 ; total resources, $156,314.37. 
Liabilities — Capital stock paid in, $25,000.00; surplus, $3,000.00; exchange, 
discounts and interest, $3,280.62; demand deposits, $85,018.69; time de- 
posits, $39,967.96; due to banks and trust companies, $47.10; total liabilities, 

$i56,3i4-37- 

The bank does an ever-increasing business and justly merits the success 
which has come to it. Its officials enjoy the confidence of Brownsburg and 
vicinity, and this fact alone is one of the most valuable assets of the bank. 
A good bank is an important factor in the material advancement of any com- 
munity and the Brownsburg State Bank is performing a useful service for all 
the varied interests of this locality. 



WILLIAM H. SHIELDS. 



One of the conspicuous names on the list of Hendricks county agricul- 
turists is William H. Shields, proprietor of a fine farm in Franklin town- 
ship, a gentleman of high standing to whom, has not been denied a full 
measure of success. Long recognized as a factor of importance in connection 
with the farming and stock raising industries here, he has been prominently 
identified with the material growth and prosperity of this part of the state, 
his life having been closely interwoven with the history of the county where 
he has been content to live and follow his chosen vocation for over a half 
century. 

The Shields family is one of the oldest and most highly respected fami- 
lies in Hendricks county and has for nearly three-quarters of a century been 
a prominent factor in the material welfare of this section. The Shields fam- 
ily came from Tennessee early in the history of the state and first settled in 
Owen county, Indiana, the paternal grandfather. Henry Shields, dying in 
Putnam county. John H. Shields, the father of the subject of this sketch, 
w^as born in Putnam county, Indiana, January 16, 1834. His parents were 
Henry and Jane (Dick) Shields, both of whom were natives of Tennessee. 




MR. AND MRS. JOHN H. SHIELDS 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. S^S 

Henry Shields came to Putnam county in 1829, where he immediately entered 
eighty acres of land from the government and proceeded to make his home 
in this wilderness. He settled in the heavy timber near Greencastle, clearing 
the land and erecting a hewed-log cabin. He was active and industrious, 
became widely known and stood high in the esteem of those who knew him. 
Mr. Shields resided in this county until his death, in 1889. His wife, Jane 
Dick, the daughter of Jacob Dick, was a woman of more than ordinary m- 
telligence and took a great deal of pride in her children. Mr. and Mrs. 
Henry Shields were the parents of eight children: Jacob, who married, 
first, Mary Elrod, and after her death, Ann (McCarty) Cox; William, whose 
death occurred in his twenty-second year; Harriett, the wife of Harrison 
Elrod; Mary, wife of John Phillips; Louisa, wife of Jacob Phillips; Elvina, 
wife of Joseph Elrod; James, who married Mary Gibbons; John H., the 
father of the subject of this sketch. 

John H. Shields married Phoebe Garrison, the daughter of William 
and Lavina (Reese) Garrison, and to this union there was born one son, 
William Harrison, the subject of this sketch. After the death of his first 
wife, John EL. Shields married Amanda J. Mason, the daughter of Anselm 
and Alice (Shouse) Mason. The parents of the first wife of John H. 
Shields reared six children, Mary, Elizabeth, Harriett, Phoebe, John and 
Pickney; the parents of the second wife had eight children, Harriett, Eliza, 
Josephine, Amanda, John, Merritt. Weekly and Wickliff. 

As a boy of ten years, John H. Shields assisted his father in driving 
stock from Putnam county to the market at Lafayette, and also hauled wheat 
to that place, receiving fifty cents a bushel for it. 

John H. Shields is one of the oldest and most successful farmers in the 
county, and his farm of one hundred and ninety-eight acres, partly in Frank- 
lin township and partly in Putnam county, has the reputation of being one 
of the best improved and most productive of the farms in central Indiana. 
He has been a life-long Democrat in politics and always casts his ballot for 
the candidates of that party. He and his wife are loyal members of the 
Methodist Episcopal church at Coatesville, and contribute liberally of their 

means to its support. 

William Harrison Shields, proprietor of two hundred and fifty-one acres 
of land in Eranklin township, this county, is the only son of John H. Shields. 
He received his education in the Putnam county schools, and when a small 
lad started to work on his father's farm. Upon his marriage, in 1884, he 
bought a farm in Hendricks county and began a very successful career as an 

(33) 



^I.j. HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

agriculturist in this county. Before his marriage he attended school for a 
time in X'alparaiso University and since leaving college he has always been 
interested in the current events of the day. He also makes it a ])ractice to 
keep in toucii with the latest improvements in farming methods, and the re- 
sult is that he is now one of the most progressive farmers of the county. 

William H. Shields was married to Julia A. Newman, the daughter of 
John L. and Maria (Phillips) Newman, on October i, 1884, ^nd to this mar- 
riage there have been born two children, Stella and Callie, Ijoth of whom are 
still under the parental roof. Mrs. Shields" parents were both natives of 
Randolph county, North Carolina, her father's birth having occurred in 1820. 
He came to Hendricks county, Indiana, when he was eighteen years of age 
and settled on land which his father had pre\'iously entered from the govern- 
ment. He married Maria Phillips, daughter of IZli and Elizaljeth (Lanous) 
Phillips, and to this union there were six children born : Laura, who died at 
the age of six years; Jane, the wife of G. Robinson and the mother of three 
children. Edward, Joseph and Cordelia; Mary, wife of Frank Johnson, who 
has two children, Clarence and Luna ; Martha married Frank Masten and 
has three children, Flezzie, Aldie and one who died in infancy; George, who 
died at the age of sixteen years. The father of Mrs. Shields died on Febru- 
ary 20, 1892, her mother having passed away in 1886. 

William H. Shields has been a prominent factor in the material, social 
and moral welfare of the communit}^ in which he has lived for so many 
years. Li his religious relations he has been identified with the society of 
Friends and takes an active interest in the affairs of his church. Politically, 
he is allied with the Democratic party, although he has never been active in 
local politics. He is interested financially in the First National Bank of 
Coatesville and is a director in that institution at the present time. Mr. 
Shields and his wife have always l^een interested in all mo\'ements which 
seek to elevate the general welfare of the locality in which they live, and all 
movements looking to this end find ready and sympathetic helpers in them. 



CHARLES H. JORDAN. 

Specific mention is made in the following paragraphs of one of the 
worthy citizens of Hendricks county, Indiana, one who has figured in the 
growth and de\'elopment of this favored locality and whose interests have been 
identified with its progress, contributing m a definite measure in his particu- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 5^5 

lar sphere of action to the well-being of the community in which he re- 
sides and to the advancement of its normal and legitimate growth. Addi- 
tional interest also attaches to his career from the fact that practically his 
entire life has been passed within the borders of this county. Earnest pur- 
pose, mature judgment and every-day common sense are among his prom- 
inent characteristics and he has merited the respect and esteem accorded him 
by all who know him. 

Charles H. Jordan is a native of Hendricks county, being born about 
four miles east of Danville, on September 2. 1849, the son of Joseph W. and 
Anna M. (Faucett) Jordan, the former of whom was born in Preble county, 
Ohio, the son of Joseph Jordan. Joseph W. Jordan, father of the immediate 
subject of this sketch, came to Indiana when a young man and soon after 
arriving in Hendricks county he met Anna M. Faucett, their marriage taking 
place soon thereafter. They resided east of Danville until about the year 
1850, when they removed to the farm where Charles H. Jordan now lives. 
Anna Faucett was the daughter of Joseph and Rebecca (Ross) Faucett, 
who it is thought came to Indiana from Ohio, their native state. To 
Joseph W. and Anna M. (Faucett) Jordan were born five children, three 
of whom died in infancy. Joseph W. Jordan rendered valuable services to 
his country at the time of the Civil War. At the beginning of hostilities, he 
enlisted in Company I, Seventh Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, in 
which he served but three months, when he returned home and organized 
Company K of the Seventy-ninth Regiment of Indiana Volunteers, being com- 
missioned captain of same by Governor Morton, and in this capacity he 
served until near the close of the war, when he returned home owing to ill 
health. Joseph W. Jordan's death occurred in 1885 and his wife died in 
1904. He was considered one of the leading men of his day in his com- 
munity and was a man greatly honored and respected by a vast number of 

acquaintances. 

Charles H. Jordan received his elementary education in the district 
schools of Hendricks county, later spending two years in study at Oberlin 
College, Oberlin, Ohio. All the business efforts of his life have been de- 
voted to agricultural pursuits and he is an advocate of modern methods in 
farming. In 1881 Mr. Jordan was married to Aden F. Glidewell, a daugh- 
ter of Leander and Hannah (Hightshue) Glidewell, both of whom were 
natives of the Hoosier state. Leander is the son of Lewis and Nancy (Tal- 
bert) Glidewell, and Hannah Hightshue was the daughter of Nicholas and 
Jane ( Runnells) Hightshue. To the subject and his wife were born four chil- 
dren, namelv: Cassie B., the wife of Chester Brunes. They reside three 



5l6 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

miles southeast of Danville and have a family of three children, Mildred, 
Glendon and Cecil. Harry C. took as his wife Lilly Lemon, and they live 
on a farm four miles northwest of North Salem with their two children 
Joe and P'ern. Estella Ruth remains under the parental roof and is a 
teacher of music. She is a graduate of the Central Normal College at Dan- 
ville. Joseph C. also remains at home. 

Mr. Jordan's fraternal affiliations are with the honored body of Free- 
masonry, in which he has advanced to the chapter, or Royal Arch, degree 
and to the council of Royal and Select Masters. Both Mr. and Mrs.' Jordan 
are members of the Order of the Eastern Star. Although not a member 
of any church society, Mr. Jordan's religious sympathies are with the Metho- 
dist Episcopal church, of which Mrs. Jordan is an earnest and active mem- 
ber. Quiet and unassuming in his relations with his fellow men, Mr. Jor- 
dan has applied himself to the business of his farm and the care of his home 
and family. His career has been a consistent and honorable one, and be- 
cause of his staunch integrity he is entitled to and holds the sincere con- 
fidence and good will of all who know him. He has been one of those 
solid men of brain and substance so essential to the material growth and 
development of a community and whose influence has been willingly extended 
in behalf of every deserving enterprise that has for its object the advancement 
of the moral welfare of the community. 



ORA COCKERELL. 



For thousands of years, since the earliest days of civilization, the work 
of the carpenter has been a necessity among men and has been honored by 
numbering among its ranks some of the brightest lights of history. Since the 
multitudes of mankind have forsaken tents of skin and huts of clay and have 
sought for their shelter houses built of wood, the carpenter has plied his 
trade, advancing and perfecting the details of building as the centuries have 
passed, until the primitive houses of our ancestors have given place to the 
present type of building, and our homes, stores and public buildings are mar- 
vels of convenience and luxury. Many new inventions in machinery and 
tools have come to facilitate the work in recent years, and yet, in many of the 
essentials, the fundamental principles of carpentry have not changed since 
the days when the Lowly Nazarene stood at his bench in Nazareth, and dig- 
nified for all time the profession of carpentry. Today the builder finds 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 517 

his opportunities unlimited, and his profession numbers among its thousands 
many men of education, abihty and wealth. 

In our midst we have one member of this profession who is well known 
and holds an enviable position in the community, Ora Cockerell, the son of a 
carpenter, was bred to the use of tools. He was born December 8, 1872, in 
Middle township, Hendricks county, the son of Andrew Jackson and Mary 
Jane (Griffith) Cockerell. 

Andrew Jackson Cockerell was a native of Carroll county, Kentucky, but 
emigrated to Hendricks county in 1856, making the journey alone and taking 
up his abode in Middle township. Here he followed the carpenter's trade, 
building" some of the stanch, heavily-timbered houses which still stand as 
evidence of the thorough workmanship done upon them. Later he learned to 
be a wagon-maker, but devoted comparatively little time to this work. He 
was married to Mary Jane Griffith, a native of Hendricks county, who proved 
a devoted wife and mother. To them were born nine children, as follows : 
Benjamin Thomas, who died in 1902 ; Henry Marshall, James Wesley, Willis 
Elmer. Eva Jane (Pounds), Rosa (Hicks), Ora, the immediate subject of 
this article, Nettie Marie, who died in January, 1887, and Alice (Davis). In 
the year 1887 death deprived Andrew J. Cockerell of the companionship of 
his faithful wife, leaving him a large family of children to rear without her 
aid aiid encouragement. He proved himself a kind, patient father, teaching 
by example as well as precept, and instilling the principles of temperance, so- 
briety and industry into his boys. He was a member of no church and took 
no active part in politics, although a consistent adherent of the Democratic 
party, finding his associations and limiting his outside activities to the local 
lodge of Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of whch he was a member, and 
to the various social affairs of the neighborhood. He died in 1906, leaving 
a large, respected family to perpetuate his name and teachings, and many 
friends who revere his memory. 

Ora Cockerell spent his boyhood days in Middle township, Hendricks 
county, attending the elementary schools of the township, and at the early 
age of fifteen years learning the carpenter's trade. On December 23, 1896, 
he married Alta Estella Roseboom. and to them have been born four children, 
three sons, Paul Gilbert, Charles Harold and Frank, all of whom the all- 
wise Father saw fit to take unto himself in their childhood; and one daugh- 
ter. Genevieve May, who is the constant companion of her mother and the 
source of inspiration to her father. 

Mr. Cockerell is a man of few words, quiet and unassuming, but his 
judgment in business affairs is unquestioned, and his advice in public affairs 



5ii 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



at all limes carries great weight with his associates. His life has been one 
of accomplishment for himself and the commnnity. Starting in life with 
little capital save his own knowledge of his chosen trade, he has worked 
conscientiously and well, first as a good carpenter and later as a successful 
contractor, upon whose word clients can safely depend. His own home is 
visil)le evidence of his ability as a Imilder, being a beautiful, modern struc- 
ture, thoroughly equipped with every convenience for the comfort of the 
family and to facilitate the work of the home. The fact that he has twice 
been elected a member of the town board of Pittsboro, serving two terms in 
this capacitv (from 1906 to 1908 and from 191 1 to 1913), speaks more elo- 
cjuentlv of the high esteem in which he is held by his fellow men than any 
words of ours could do. 

Firm in his convictions and unswerving in adherence to principle, his 
political affiliations have not always been with the most popular party ; but 
he has worked diligently for and looked forward to the abolishment of the 
liquor traffic and its attendant evils in his own community and throughout the 
nation, and to this end has consistently allied himself with the Prohibition 
party. Fraternally, he is a member of the Pittsboro Lodge, Independent Or- 
der of Odd Fellows; the Knights of Pythias, at Brownsburg, and the Im- 
proved Order of Red Men at Lizton. He is a member of the Baptist church 
of Pittsboro, while Mrs. Cockerell has her membership in the Methodist 
church. 

The K. of P. building at Lizton, the Sawyer block and Hayworth block 
at Pittsboro, and numerous other buildings throughout the county speak of 
his ability as a builder, while his reputation for strict integrity, honor, indus- 
try and the performance of all good works in his power for the community 
at large, speak of a life of service, well spent and productive of marked re- 
sults for himself and his neighbor. 



TOSEPH G. WALTER. 



The pursuit of agriculture in itself seems to make a peculiar appeal to 
those characteristics in mankind which tend toward and develop the true and 
sincere in character. Nearer, in his daily life, to the beautiful heart of nature 
than any other man, witnessing in all around him the wonders which the 
Almighty daily performs; seeing in the sprouting of the ^eed, the purling 
of the brook and the habits of live creatures the miracles wdnch are hidden 



HENDRICKS COUNTY,, INDIANA. 5^9 

from the cliff dweller of the crowded city, is it small wonder that he is 
uncontaminated bv the petty, mean things of life. And as he sees these 
things in his daily life and work, his nature deepens and truth and smcenty 
become his natural attitude toward life and his fellow men. ^ ^ ,., . 

If is of such a man we wish to speak in this article. Joseph G. V\ al- 
ter was born January 29, 1848, in Middle township, Hendricks county, the 
son of William Eli and Caroline (Reynolds) Walter. His boyhood was 
spent upon the farm of his father, and here he roamed the fields and learn- 
ed the fundamental principles of his vocation. He attended the schools ot 
the township, assisting his father with the work of the farm m his spare 

time. . , 

In 1872 Mr Walter was married to Virginia Dickerson, but m the year 
1880 death called her from him. In 1891 he again married. Azzie Pierson, 
the daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth (Jones) Pierson, becoming his 
wife. Three children have come to bless this union, all of whom are still 

at home with their parents. • 1 • 1 u 1 

Durino- his early life, Mr. Walter was at one time seized with the de- 
sire for a change, and this wanderlust led him to seek new scenes and new 
faces and new occupations in the far West. The beautiful state, o Colo^ 
rado eventually became his goal and there, for five years, he engaged m the 
work of mining silver, but the love of home and the memories of the green 
fields of his native county were strong within him and he finally turned his 
back upon the glories of the beautiful Rockies and returned to the Hoosier 
state Here he has since remained, eventually purchasing a farm of about 
sixty-four acres, lying both in Middle and Union townships, and this tract, 
with its comfortable house and well-kept buildings, is one of the well known 

homesteads of the locality. ^ ,^ . 

The subject's father, Eli Walter, was a native of Kauquier county, 
Virginia but "emigrated while still a young man, to Hamilton county, Ohio, 
remaining in this place about two years. A residence of about five years 
in Wayne county followed, and there he met and married Caroline Reynolds, 
a native of the state of New Jersey. Eleven children were born to them as 
follows: Sarah, John W., Nancy Rachel, Lucy Jane (Anderson), Alex- 
ander Joseph G.. Martha C. (Thompson). George. Benjamin. William and 
an infant\vho lived but a few hours. Of these children but three survive, 
Toseph G . Lucv Jane and Martha C. Mr. Walter entered land trom the 
o-overnment in St. Toe county, and also in Tipton county, this state, but it 
was in Hendricks 'county that he chose to spend his days and rear his 
familv He was untiring in his efforts upon the farm, giving his time and 



520 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

energy to the successful cultivation of the soil, drawing therefrom sus- 
tenance for his large and growing family. The faithful wife and mother 
was called from this earth to her final rest in 1857, and for thirty-three years 
thereafter he found his comfort in his home and children, until death called 
him in 1890. 

In manner, Joseph G. Walter is quiet and unassuming, yet sociable 
withal and a man to inspire confidence. His reputation for honesty and 
veracity is unquestioned and his friends speak of him as a man "whose 
word is as good as his bond.'' He is a firm believer in the tenets of the 
Republican party ; a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, at 
Pittsboro, and is also affiliated with the Masonic order of that place. He has 
aspired to no political office, devoting his energies to his home, his farm and 
the improvement of his surroundings, but in all questions touching the wel- 
fare of the community at large he shows a vital interest. Though not an 
active member of any church, his sympathies are with the Christian denomina- 
tion. Both he and his wife are devoted to their three children and are popular 
with the young people in their vicinity. 

A man of large acquaintance, many friends and a host of well wishers, 
his life has been a source of uplift to those with whom he has come in 
contact, and the community at large is the better for his having lived in it. 
Thus has he fulfilled man's highest mission in life, to so live that when 
he is called from hence he shall leave the world better than he found it. 



L. 



YRUS H. MASTEN. 



One of the best farmers of Hendricks county, who by virtue of his 
strong individual qualities has earned his way to a high standing in the esti- 
mation of his fellow citizens, is Cyrus H. Hasten, who, by sheer force of 
character and persistency, has won his way from a humble beginning to a 
place of influence and prominence in the community where he has been active 
for many years. As a young man he taught school for nine years and the 
training and discipline which he acquired as a result of his teaching ex- 
perience has made him a valuable man in the life of the community. He 
always keeps well informed upon all the latest methods of agriculture and 
comes as near being a scientific farmer as any one in the county. 

Cyrus H. Masten, the proprietor of one hundred and thirty acres of 
fine land in Franklin township, was born July 2, 1854, in the county where 




MR. AND MRS. CYRUS H. MASTEN 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 521 

he has Hved his entire hfe. His parents were John and Sarah (Harvey) 
Hasten, his father being a native of North Carohna, while his mother was 
born in Ohio. John Masten came to Hendricks county, Indiana, at the 
age of five, with his parents, who were farmers, and, after a hmited eckica- 
tion in the subscription schools of that period, he started to work on his 
father's farm. While still a young man he married Sarah Harvey, the 
daughter of Nathan and Ruth (Jones) Harvey, and to this union there 
were born eight children: One who died in infancy; Ruth, who first married 
Clark Hodson, and after his death, \\'. R. Shirley, and later Allen Wicker ; 
Emory, who married Emma Mendenhall ; Elmer and Anna, both unmarried 
and living in Amo; Sarah, deceased; Milo, deceased, and Cyrus, the im- 
mediate subject of this sketch. 

Cyrus H. Masten was interested in education from the time that he 
took his first reader to school, and before he completed his education he had 
finished the common school course and also the courses at Valparaiso Uni- 
versity and the Indiana State Normal School at Terre Haute. W^ith this 
preparation he started to teach in the public schools of his county and for 
the next ten years he was one of the most successful teachers in the county. 
The teaching profession lost an able instructor when he decided to retire 
from the school room and engage in farming. He had taught two years 
before he graduated. As a farmer he has been no less successful than as a 
teacher, and the same (pialities ^^•hich l^rought him success in the school 
room have been of benefit to him in his agricultural career. 

Mr. Masten was married to Laura E. Hadley, the daughter of Jehu 
and Jerusha (Stiles) Hadley, and to this union there were born five children, 
Verne, Ray H., Floy fv/ho married Ralph Shields and has one child, Donnas 
Lucile), Earl H. and Eva. The parents of Mrs. Masten were prominent 
citizens of this county, and raised an interesting family of ten children : 
Nancy, wife of William Daggy; Mary, wife of Dr. H. Gibbons; Henry, 
unmarried; George, deceased; Sybil, wife of W. Wilson; Marcus, deceased; 
Alice, wife of D. B. Matlock; Laura, wife of the subject; Jerusha, wife of 
Edward Ragland : Jehu, who married Olive Wilhite. The latter two are twins. 
The mother of Mrs. Masten died in 1899, and her father in 1894. 

Mr. Masten is a Progressive in politics, having joined that partv upon 
its organization in the fall of 1912, because he felt that in the principles 
advocated by that party there was a splendid opportunity for improving the 
condition of the community at large. He and his wife are devoted mem- 
bers of the Christian church at Stilesville, Indiana, and are interested in all 



522 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

of its various activities. Mr. Masten has always been active in all move- 
ments looking toward the welfare of his locality. He has alwavs been a 
sympathetic and ready helper uf all public enterprises. He is a genial man 
and one who has a host of friends throughout the township and county who 
admire him for the sterling uprightness of his character. 



ELMER SMITH. 



The following is the sketch of a plain, honest man of affairs, who by 
correct methods and a strict regard for the interests of those with whom his 
business interests brought him into contact, has made his intiuence felt in 
Brownsburg and vicinity and has won for himself distinctive prestige in the 
business circles of that city. He would be the last man to sit for romance 
or become the subject of fancy sketches; nevertheless his life presents much 
that is interesting and valuable and may be studied with profit by the young 
w^hose careers are yet to be achieved. He is one of those whose integrity and 
strength of character must force them into an admirable notoriety, which 
their modesty never seeks, who command the respect of their contemporaries 
and their posterity and leave the impress of their individuality deeply stamped 
upon the community. 

Elmer Smith was born May 2, 1873, in f^ike township, Marion county, 
Indiana, the son of Elijah and Evelin (McCurdy) Smith, the former of 
whom was born in Brown township, Hendricks county, on September 29, 
1846. He was the son of Thomas D. and Susan (Ford) Smith, natives 
of Kentucky, who, soon after their marriage, came to Indiana, making the 
journey on horseback. Thomas D. was the son of Isaac Smith, who was a 
native of North Carolina and went to Kentucky with his father when a boy. 
He later moved to Indiana and settled about four miles southeast of Browns- 
burg in Hendricks county. 

Elijah Smith, father of the subject, was one of a family of nine chil- 
dren and lived at home until the time of his marriage, being in the mean- 
time instructed by his father in the proper methods of agriculture. After 
his marriage, he took up his residence in Marion county, this state, wdiere 
he had rented a farm on Eagle creek. There he made his home from 1870 
to 1900, having purchased one hundred and forty acres of land thereabouts. 
In 1900 he disposed of a portion of this land and removed to Brownsburg, 
where he purchased property and now resides. In 1870 Elijah Smith was 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 523 

united in marriage witli Evelin McCurdy, daughter of David and Nancy 
(Hill) McCurdy. and in July, 1902. she died, leaving two children, the 
subject of this sketch and his brother, Alvin A. 

Elmer Smith remained at his father's home until the time of his mar- 
riage, having received his education in the district schools of Marion county. 
After his marriage he took up his residence on a farm he had purchased 
adjoining that of his father. He remained there until 1903. when he re- 
moved to Brownsburg, where he resided for about nine months, and in 
August of that year he took up his residence on a farm which he had ])ur- 
chased in Brown township, this county. There he lived for three vears, 
when he returned to Brownsburg. In the spring of 1907 he engaged in the 
retail hardware business in Brownsburg, and remained in that connection 
until the spring of 1910, when he disposed of his business and engaged 
in the sale of real estate. For two years he worked at this line and in 
March, 1912. opened up the hrst garage in town, known as Smith's garage. 
He also has the distinction of having started the first hardware business in 
the town, and on February i, 1914, he again opened up a hardware busi- 
ness in connection with his garage. Mr. Smith has been eminently suc- 
cessful in the various business ventures in which he has engaged and in 
addition to his present thriving business, owns forty acres of land on the 
eastern edge of Browaisburg besides the property adjoining his residence, 
also another house and lot and five lots in the Johnson-Hughes addition to 
Brownsburg and his business property. He has at various times owned 
different pieces of property in the town, as w-ell as farms in both Marion and 
Hendricks counties, all of which he has handled in a way to his own right- 
ful ad\'antage. \Miile engaged primarily in fostering his own interests, 
Mr. Smith has ever so ordered his principles of private life and business 
as to wnn the confidence and respect of those with whom he comes in contact. 

On December 29, 1897, ^^^- Smith was united in marriage with Aland 
E. Delong, born February 3, 1882. daughter of F. A. and Mollie ( Matt- 
hewes) Delong, at present residing near Traders Point, this state. Airs. 
Smith, however, was born in Alichigan. Her father, F. A. Delong, came orig- 
inally from Boone county, this state, being the son of David and Sally De- 
long. Air. and Airs. Smith have a family of four children, Elva, Alary, 
Freeda and Russell, all living with the parents. The family is identified 
with the A'lethodist Episcopal church, of which Mr. Smith is an active and 
consistent member, and his fraternal affiliations are with the time-honored 
body of Free and Accepted Alasons. the Independent Order of Odd Fellows 



524 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

and the Knights of Pythias. Both Mr. and Mrs. Smith are members of the 
Order of the Eastern Star and the Daughters of Rebekah. Mr. Smith has 
all his life been aligned with the Democratic party and has taken an active 
interest in its affairs. While not an aspirant for office himself, he has taken 
a keen interest in seeing the right man go into the right place and his influence 
is a thing reckoned with by those seeking public office. Mr. Smith was 
elected justice of the peace for his community recently, but refused to 
serve, at the same time appreciating the honor conferred upon him. He also 
made the race for county commissioner in 19 14. Mr. Smith has always 
been regarded as a man of high principles, honest in every respect and 
broad-minded. A man of depth of character, kindness of heart to the un- 
fortunate and ever willing to aid in any way any cause for the betterment 
of the community and the public with which he has to deal, he is, conse- 
quently, held in high favor and the utmost respect by all who know him. 
Genial and sociable in his temperament, he has a host of friends and retains 
them throughout the years. 



JONATHAN LOWE. 



In the early days, when our state was young and sparsely settled, the 
riches of the earth seemed inexhaustible, and after the arduous labor of 
clearing away the grand old forests which covered so much of the ground 
was accomplished, the pioneer farmer found the land fallow and black, 
ready to produce bountiful harvests each season, without the necessity for 
specialized training in the science of food production. But gradually, as 
the magnificent tracts of forest land became more and more scarce and 
population increased, more was demanded of the soil. And gradually, also, 
pests of various kinds multiplied to interfere with the growth and blight 
the maturity of the fruits of the land, until now, agriculture has become 
a science in itself, and men of high intelligence and broad education find a 
profession worthy of their utmost effort. This condition of affairs has 
brought prominently to the front the broad minded, highly educated, special- 
ized agriculturist of today, and with such a man our sketch has to deal. 

Jonathan Lowe, son of Nathan B. and Sarah (Coffin) Lowe, is a splendid 

• example of this class of progressive, up-to-date farmer. Himself a ]iroduct 

of Hendricks county, he was born October 4, 1880, in Middle township. 

Here he spent his boyhood on the farm of his father, attending the town- 



r 



PTENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 525 

ship schools, and after graduating there, taking the full course in the high 
school at l.izton. This was followed by two terms in the Central Normal 
College at Danville. 

Mrs. Jonathan Lowe is also a member of "a. well-known family, being 
the daughter of William H. Walter, one of the early inhabitants of the 
county, a successful farmer, and the father of eleven children, as follows: 
Mrs. Martha Carrie Overstreet; Orrie. deceased; George Elvin and Charles, 
twins, the latter of whom death claimed in 1912; Mrs. Mertie Keeney; Mrs. 
Mary A. West ; Mrs. Elizabeth Alice Leak ; John A. ; Jessie Mable. the wife 
of the subject; Ernest R., and Marion, who died in infancy. Mr. Walter 
was a member of Company B, One Hundred and Thirty-ninth Indiana 
Volunteers, enlisting shortly before the close of the war and remaining in 
the. service until peace was declared, being mustered out at Indianapolis in 
July, 1865. Lie Avas married in the year 1866 to Anna Eliza Talbert. a native 
of Hendricks county, and found in her a faithful helpmate and a devoted 
mother to the children which she bore him. Mr. Walter passed away April 
20, 1907. His widow still survives, a well-known and respected resident 
of Middle township, this county. 

Jonathan Lowe and his wife are widely known for their broad minded- 
ness, activity in church and social affairs and the progressive spirit which 
dominates their undertakings. Mr. Lowe takes great pride in the upkeep of 
his buildings and the improvement and development of his farm of forty 
acres, which is a part of the tract of six hundred and forty acres entered 
from the government by his maternal grandfather. The famous old beaver 
dam is located on the south part of this ninety acres, and although it is now 
mostly filled in, it is an interestmg landmark, having formerly been con- 
sidered the best in the county. 

On October 4, 1908, Mr. Low^e was married to Jessie Mable Walter, 
who also is a native of Hendricks county, and one year later the young couple 
began their residence on the farm which they now occupy. Two sons, 
Joel Walter and James Elvin, have come to brighten their home. 

Mr. Lowe is of Scotch-Irish descent, through his father, Nathan B. 
Lowe, the son of William and Grace Lowe, of Backcreek township, Ran- 
dolph county. North Carolina, honest, sturdy adherents of the Quaker 
church. In i860 Nathan Lowe migrated to Rush county, Indiana, and a year 
later came to Hendricks county, where he remained until the day of his 
death, the 3d day of January, 1903. He was a well-informed, broad- 
minded man, a successful farmer and a useful member of the community. 



526 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Earlv in life he was married to Sarah Coffin, a native of Hendricks county, 
and to them were born six children: Lydia J. and James (both deceased), 
Elizabeth Grace, Joseph C. Jonathan and Sarah Alice. His wife was the 
youngest daughter of Joseph I. Coffin, a large land owner, aggressive in busi- 
ness affairs, though quiet and conservative in manner. One of the early 
settlers in the county, he entered from the government six hundred and forty 
acres of land, and by his diligent efforts this and much surrounding land was 
pro\'ided with adequate drainage, greatly enhancing its value and render- 
ing much of it available for valuable farming land which otherwise could 
not have been cultivated. An inherent trait of character was the desire to 
use the very best methods of work, and to this end he made the first plows 
which were used in Hendricks county. This trait is still evident in his 
descendants. 

The most modern methods of work are sought and used in all depart- 
ments of Mr. Towe's work, supplementing his own energy and practical 
foresight by the use of modern tools and machinery. He is interested in the 
breeding of live stock, which he considers an essential feature on the suc- 
cessful, modern farm. He is a consistent Republican voter and has taken 
an active part in politics, while his influence is felt in all movements touch- 
ing the general welfare of the community. vStrictly honest, clean cut and 
decisive in his dealings, he enjoys the fullest confidence of his associates. 
The Methodist church at Lizton, of which he and his wife are active members, 
has shown its faith in his integrity by electing him trustee and treasurer 
of its board of linance. Altogether he stands for what is highest and 
best in the life of the modern agriculturist. 



JOHN A. LEAK. 

Few farmers in the locality of which this history treats seem to 
understand better the way in which to manage Indiana soil in order to get 
the largest returns from it than John .'\. Leak, of Union township, a man 
who has succeeded because he has given his exclusive attention to his in- 
dividual affairs, studied carefully the relation of soil to crops, climate and 
all the phases relating to improved farming. 

John A. Leak was born January 28. 1858. in the township where he 
has lived his whole life. He is the son (jf Landrum and Sarah (Leach) Leak, 
both his father and his mother beinsr natives of Kentuckv. Landrum Leak 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 527 

was born in 1818 and came to this county with his parents, James and 
Elizabeth Leak, in 1835, when he was seventeen years of age. He grew 
to manhood under pioneer conditions and became a successful farmer in 
the township. He was twice married, his first marriage being to Evaline 
Martin, and the second marriage to Sarah Leach. There was one son born 
to the first marriage, James M., who died in 1888. To the second marriage 
were born four children: Mrs. Evaline Jeger, of New Mexico; William L., 
of Anderson, Indiana; John A., whose history is herein delineated, and 
George B., a twin brother of John A., who died about 1902. Landrum Leak 
died in 1890 on a farm in Union township. 

John A. Leak received such education as was afforded by his home 
school in Union township and the two years before his marriage in 1885 
he spent in Tennessee. Upon his marriage, Mr. Leak moved to Johnson 
county near Greenwood, where he farmed for six years ; he then went 10 
Kokomo and entered the grocery business and followed this for the next 
four years, after which he moved back to Hendricks county and settled on the 
old homestead farm which he rented for two years. He then bought twenty- 
seven acres one mile south of his present farm, and lived on it three years, 
when he bought sixty acres where he now lives and later added another 
forty acres, a total acreage now of one hundred acres. Mr. Leak has been 
sufficiently progressive to keep abreast of the latest developments in agri- 
cultural methods and has won a full measure of prosperity in his present 
location. He has not only been an important factor in the agricultural life 
of his community, but he has also been interested in the Citizens Bank at 
Lizton, in which he is a stockholder and director at the present time. 

Mr. Leak was married February 25, 1885, to Nevada Leak, the daughter 
of James AT. and Alary (Dickey) Leak. The biography of James M. Leak, 
given elsewhere in this volume, gives the ancestry of that branch of the 
Leak family to which Mrs. John A. Leak belongs. Mr. and Mrs. John A. 
Leak have two very promising sons living; one son, Warren, died in infancy, 
the other two sons being Roy and Glenn. Both of the boys graduated from 
the Lizton high school and later spent two terms in the Central Normal 
College of Danville. After they began to teach, they spent one year in the 
State Normal School at Terre Haute in order to qualify themselves for 
better work in the school room. Roy is now teaching at .Stilesville, this 
countv, and Glenn teaches in Marion county, near University Heights. 

In his fraternal relations, Mr. Leak is a member of the Knights of 
Pythias at Lizton, while politically he has long been identified with the 



528 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Democratic party, but has never been a candidate for any public ofifice, pre- 
ferring to devote his attention to his agricultural interests. He has a fine 
residence, which he has recently remodeled and improved in many ways, 
a large barn, good outbuildings and various other improvements which 
render his farm a very attractive place. Mr. Leak is a self-made man in 
every respect and has been a hard worker all of his life. He is a pleasant 
man to meet, congenial in all of his relations with his fellow men and has 
always make it a point to identify himself with all worthy public measures. 



WILLIAM HENRY APPLEBAY. 

Among the old and highly respected farmers of Hendricks county there 
is no one who stands higher in the esteem of his fellow citizens than the gal- 
lant old veteran whose name forms the caption of this sketch. Llis three- 
score and ten years have been spent within the limits of this county with the 
exception of the two years when he served his country so nobly at the front. 
For the past fifty years be has been actively engaged in agricultural pursuits 
in this county and the years of his residence here have but served to strengthen 
the feeling of admiration on the part of his fellow men, owing to the honor- 
able life he has led and the worthy example he has set the younger genera- 
tion. 

William Henry Applebay, one of the youngest soldiers who enlisted 
from this county for service in the Civil War, was born in Center town- 
ship, Hendricks county, Indiana, December 2, 1844. His parents were 
William and Sebith (Sears) Applebay, the father being a native of Lincoln 
county, Kentucky, born in 181 5, and his mother a native of Clark county, 
Kentucky, born in 1818. The grandparents of William Henry Applebay 
were Philip and Mary (Walker) Applebay, who reared a large family of 
ten children. After the death of his first wife Philip Applebay married 
Susan Dancer and to this second marriage were born seven children. Will- 
iam Applebay, father of the subject of this sketch, came to Hendricks county, 
Indiana, in 1839, locating in Danville, where he remained for the succeeding 
eighteen years. He then liioved to Franklin township, this county, where he re- 
mained until his death, which occurred on May 11, 1863. To Mr. and Mrs. 
William Applebay were born twelve children : Wesley, who married Sarah 
Fisher, and they were the parents of three children ; Mary, who married Will- 
iam H. McCloud. and they are both deceased, and to this marriage were born 




WILLIAM H. APPLEBAY 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 529 

nine children; Maria died unmarried; William H., the immediate subject 
of this sketch; Mariah, Milton, Susan, David and Nancy, twins, Martha, 
Amanda and Isabelle. Nancy, Martha and William H. are unmarried and 
living today. 

When the Civil War broke out William H. Applebay wanted to enlist 
at once, but on account of his age the local recruiting officer would not take 
him in. As soon as he reached the age of eighteen he enlisted in Company 
E, Seventy-eighth Regiment, under Captain A. J. Lee, and served two 
months. Later he enlisted in Company B. of the Fifty-ninth Regiment 
Indiana Volunteer Infantry, under Captain J. M. Lee, and was immediately 
transferred to General Sherman's Twentieth Corps in eastern Kentucky. 
He was in the eastern part of Tennessee and in March, 1864, started with 
General Sherman on his memorable march to the sea. He was in all the 
battles from Resaca. in the northwestern corner of Georgia, through Dalton, 
Atlanta to Savannah, which was reached on the 25th of December, 1864. 
He was in the rear and around Atlanta during the months of June and 
July of that summer. In the spring of 1865 his company was attached to 
the brigade which went north with Sherman to South Carolina and North 
Carolina, and he was headed for Greensboro to the surrender of General 
Johnson to General Sherman in April, 1865, at Greensboro, North Carolina. 
He served one year and a half in a creditable manner, after which he was mus- 
tered out at the close of the service and returned to his home in Hendricks 
county, Indiana. 

When Mr. Applebay enlisted in the army his mother was a widow with 
a large family of small children. He was their main support, for they were 
poor and owned no land. He iixed up an old log cabin for them to live in 
during his absence, but while he was in the service the owners of the cabin 
put the mother and children out of their little home. However, she bravely 
struggled to keep the family together, spinning and weaving and making 
their clothing and doing a man's work as far as was necessary. She was a 
woman of strong character and reared her children to honorable and respect- 
ed manhood and womanhood. 

For the past half century Mr. Applebay and his two sisters have lived 
in Franklin township. None of them has ever married, their affection for 
each other being such that they have always led a very happv existence 
in their home life together. Here on his farm Mr. Applebay has lived the 
simple, plain and unostentatious life of a farmer, doing all that came in 
(34) 



530 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

his way in the best possible manner. Year in and year out he has taken 
his part in the community's affairs, has been a factor in local politics, al- 
though he has never held any office aside from that of district central com- 
mitteeman. He has always been a factor in the church at Stilesville. In 
fraternal affairs he has been a Mason for forty years and is one of the best 
informed men on Masonry in the county. He has passed through all the 
chairs of the lodge from tyler to worshipful master. It is needless to say that 
he is a loyal and enthusiastic member of the Grand Army of the Republic, and 
the Greencastle Post has no more loyal member than Mr. Applebay. He 
is one of those genial, whole-souled men who always meets every one with 
a smile. It is his habit to always see the silver lining of the darkest clouds, 
and his optimistic nature has made him a general favorite with all in the 
conmiunity where he has spent his threescore and ten years. It wnll not be 
many years before he will answer the last roll call and when his hearty voice 
is no more heard in the streets there will have been gone one friend who 
figured largely in the daily life of this locality. His whole life has been 
characterized by honesty, truthfulness and all those qualities which mark 
him as a true citizen. 



ELI H. ROSS. 



The history of the Hoosier state dates from December ii, 1816. It is 
the record of the steady growth of a community planted in the wilderness in 
the last century and reaching its magnitude of today without other aids than 
those of continued industry. Each county has its share in the story, and every 
county can lay claim to some incident or transaction which goes to make 
up the. histor}- of the commonwealth. After all, the history of a state is 
but a record of the doings of its people, among whom the pioneers and their 
sturdy descendants occupy places of no secondary importance. The story 
of the plain, common people who constitute the moral bone and sinew of 
the state should ever attract the attention and prove of interest to all true 
lovers of their kind. In the life story of the subject of this sketch there 
are no striking chapters or startling incidents, but it is merely the record of 
a life true to its highest ideals and fraught with much that should stimulate 
the youth just starting in the world as an independent factor. 

Eli H. Ross, the son of Alexander and Bethiah (Hurain) Ross, was 
born March 13, 1848, on the farm in Washington township \Ahere he is now 
residing. Alexander Ross was born near Redstone, Pennsylvania, in 1807, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 53 1 

and came with his parents to Warren county, Ohio, in 1808. After remain- 
ing there a short time, they moved to Hendricks comity, Indiana, in 1832, 
where Alexander Ross bought a farm from Benjamin Abbott Hurain, who 
had entered same from the government several years before. The wife 
of Alexander Ross was born August 22, 1809, in Warren county, Ohio, and 
died June i, 1884. Alexander Ross, who died in 1858, was a farmer and was 
an earnest member of the Methodist Episcopal church. His father, John 
Ross, was in the War of 18 12. and his father. Alexander Ross, great- 
grandfather of the subject, was a soldier in the Revolutionary War. John 
Ross had fourteen grandsons in the Union army during the Civil War. 
lie was a resident of Hendricks county and a farmer by vocation. 

Eli Ross received his common school education in the schools of Wash- 
ington township and early in life began to work upon his father's farm. That 
he was an apt student under his father's tutelage is shown by the fact that 
he is today one of the most progressive farmers of the township. He was 
married in 1889 to Linna C. Barker, the daughter of Robert and Dorcas 
Barker, of Hendricks county. Mrs. Ross was born in this county November 
23, 1852. Mr. and Mrs. Ross are both consistent and faithful members of the 
Wesley Methodist Episcopal church at Avon. Mr. Ross is a member of the 
Republican party, and has always been more or less interested in political 
affairs. His party nominated him for township assessor and he was elected, 
holding the office for four years. He was constable and is at present on 
the advisory board of the township. 



JOHN W. FIGG. 



Whether the elements of success in life are innate attributes of the 
individual or whether they are quickened by a process of circumstantial de- 
velopment, it is impossible to clearly determine. Yet the study of a success- 
ful life, whatever the field of endeavor, is none the less interesting and 
profitable by reason of the existence of this same uncertainty. So much in 
excess of those of successes are the records of failures or semi-failures, that 
one is constrained to attempt an analysis in either case and to determine the 
measure of causation in an approximate way. But in studying the life his- 
tory of the well known resident and popular citizen of Amo, whose name 
forms the caption of this sketch, we find many qualities in his makeup that 
always gain definite success in any career if properly directed, as his has 



532 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

evidently been done, which has resuhed in a Hfe of good to others as weh as 
in a comfortable competence to himself. 

John \V. Figg, the proper and etficient superintendent of the Plaintield 
schools, was born in Putnam county, Indiana, December 13, 1859. His 
parents were Robert P^. and Abigal (Layton) Figg. His father was born 
in Kentucky in 1837 and came to Indiana with his parents, Mr, and. Mrs. 
Francis (Asbury) Figg, in 1848 and settled in Putnam county. His mother 
came from Pennsylvania with her parents to Ohio and later the family 
settled in Putnam county, this state, where she met Robert Figg. When the 
Civil War opened, Robert Figg enlisted, in December, i8.')i, in the Sixty- 
second Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and died in March, 1862, at 
the age of twenty-four, leaving his widow and three small children. John 
W. Figg. the leading subject of this sketch, was only three years of age at 
the time. The other two children were Elizabeth, who died at the age of 
twenty-two, lea\ing her husband, Joseph Warren, and one son, and Rebecca 
Olive, who married Myron Stanley. She died at the age of twenty-one, 
leaving one daughter, Elizabeth. 

John W. Figg was reared by his grandfather, Francis Asbury Figg, 
in Putnam county, and was gi\'en a good common school education. As a 
lad he showed promise of future ability along educational lines, and his 
grandfather sent him to the Central Normal College at Danville and after 
that he taught eight years in Putnam county. Then, in order to better pre- 
pare himself for teaching, he entered the State Normal School at Terre 
Haute in 1895 ^^^^ graduated in 1901. Later he went back and took post- 
graduate work there. In 1894 he was elected county surveyor of this county, 
and was re-elected in 1896, but resigned in April, 1898, to take additional 
work in the State Normal School. In August, 1898, he was elected county 
superintendent of schools and served in that capacity for three years. In 
May, 191 2, he was selected superintendent of the Plainfield schools and has 
served in that capacitv ever since. As a public school superintendent he has 
been a success, having all of those qualities which a successful superintendent 
should have. Under his management the schools have increased their en- 
rollment, broadened their curriculum and become an increasingly important 
factor in the life of the community. 

Professor Figg was married in 1883 to Isabell Allee, and after her 
death, in 1894, he married Osie Stuart, on June 3, 1896. Mr. and Mrs. 
Zeno Stuart, the parents of Professor Figg's second wife, had seven chil- 
dren, four of whom are still living. 

Mr. and Mrs. Figg are consistent members of the Methodist Episcopal 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 533 

church of Amo, and as a Christian man Professor Figg has wielded a potent 
influence in this community, while as a public-spirited citizen he has given 
his earnest support to all movements for the advancement of the general 
welfare. He possesses a rare equanimity of temper and kindness of heart, 
which has won for him the sincere regard of all who know him. His mind 
is rich with the fruits of a life of reading and observation; in fact, he has 
belie\ed thoroughly and absolutely in doing well whatever he has under- 
taken. He has at all times enjoyed the confidence of all those with whom he 
has associated. 



CHARLES ROARK. 



Improvement and progress may well be said to form the keynote of the 
character of Charles Roark, a well known and influential farmer and present 
trustee of Washington township, and he has not only been interested in 
the work of advancing his individual affairs, but his influence is felt in 
upbuilding the community. He has been an industrious man all his life, 
striving to keep abreast the times in every respect, and as a result every 
mile post of the years he has passed has found him further advanced, more 
prosperous, and with an increased number of friends. 

Charles Roark, the present trustee of Washington township, was born in 
1868 in the country where he has always resided. His ancestry is Irish, his 
grandparents having been born in Ireland, and coming to this country early 
in the nineteenth century. They first settled in Pennsylvania and later in 
Butler county, Ohio, from whence they came to Franklin county, Indiana. 
Caleb and Emily Roark, the parents of Charles, were born and married in 
Franklin county, Indiana, and came to this county shortly after their mar- 
riage, where thev reared a family of four children : Fletcher, who is married 
and a street car motorman in Indianapolis; Jones, who is married and a 
farmer in Washington township, this county; Charles, single, who is at 
present the trustee of Washington township; Mary, who is single, and is now 
keeping house for her l)rother Charles on the old home place. 

Charles Roark received his education in the district schools of his 
neighborhood and early in life began to work upon his father's farm. For 
four vears he has been farming the Roark homestead ])lace and has improved 
the farm in many places, putting in ditches, building fences and improving 
the outbuildings He is regarded as one of the professional farmers of the 
township and a man of wideawake and progressive ideas. An indication 



534 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

of the esteem and regard with which he is held by his fellow citizens 
is shown by the fact that he was elected trustee of his home township, an 
office which he has been filling to the entire satisfaction of all of the citizens 
of the township, irrespective of party affiliations. He is a member of the 
Knights of Pythias lodge at Plainfield, and also a member of the Salem 
church in his home township. Politically, he is a Democrat. He has hosts 
of warm friends throughout the township and, because of his reputation 
for honesty and integrity, he is esteemed by everyone with whom he is 
associated. As township trustee he has had management of the schools of 
the townshi]) and has been very much interested in securing the best teachers 
possible and keeping the schools up to the highest state of efficiency. He has 
also been interested in road building and is taking an advanced step in getting 
the roads of his township in good condition. It is safe to say that the 
township has never had a more proper or proficient official than Mr. Roark. 



FREDERICK V. BEELER. 

The biographies of enterprising men, especially of good men, are in- 
structive as guides and incentives to others. The examples they furnish 
of patient purpose and steadfast integrity strongly illustrate what is in the 
power of each to accomplish. Some men belong to no exclusive class in 
life, apparently insurmountable obstacles have in many instances awakened 
their dormant faculties and served as a stimulus to carry them to ultimate 
success, if not renown. The instances of success in the face of adverse fate 
would seem almost to justify the conclusion that self-reliance, with a half 
chance, can accomplish any object. The life of Frederick V. Beeler, 
well-known and successful merchant of Friends wood, Hendricks county, is 
an example in point, for by his individual efforts and close adherence to his 
every duty, he has overcome the obstacles encountered on the highway of 
life and is now very comfortably fixed regarding this world's affairs and 
has at the same time won a reputation for right living among his fellow men. 

Frederick V. Beeler, one of the most highly respected merchants and 
business men of Friendswood, was born in Morgan county, Indiana, Novem- 
ber 25, 1 85 1. He is one of nineteen children born to Jonas Vestal and 
Elizabeth (Copenhaver) Beeler, and one of the sixteen who grew to matur- 
ity. Jonas Beeler was also a native of Morgan county and some years after 
his marriage he moved to Marion county, where he bought a farm and lived 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 535 

most ot the remainder of his Hfe, dying in 1904. The mother of Frederick 
V. was born in Ohio, her parents coming from Pennsylvania. She died in 
1902. 

Frederick V. Beeler was educated in the common schools of Morgan 
and Marion counties, and early in life was put on his own resources. The 
success which he now enjoys has been the result of constant effort and un- 
remitting diligence. At the age of nineteen he left home and until he was 
twenty-five years of age worked at odd jobs, most of the time doing farm 
work of some kind. When he was twenty-five years of age he started in 
the huckster business, and for the next thirty-seven years he operated a 
huckster wagon in connection with a store at Friendswood. His personality 
and general reputation for honesty and integrity has always given him the 
confidence of his fellow citizens and he has occupied many public and private 
positions of honor and trust. He was agent for the Vandalia railroad at 
Friendswood for fourteen years, and has been agent for the Terre Haute, 
Indianapolis & Eastern Traction Company for the past five years. He was 
postmaster for eight years, serving during Cleveland's administrations. In 
fact in everything in which he has engaged he has been signally successful, 
and his every action has denoted the man who inspires confidence because 
of his uprightness and frankness in dealing with his fellow men. He has 
a general store at Friendswood, in which he carries a large and selective 
stock of up-to-date goods such as are found in stores of this kind, and has 
a very extensive and lucrative trade in the town and surrounding country. 
He also has holdings in real estate in the town and county, and is now rec- 
ognized, after many years of toil, as one of the successful men of the com- 
munity. 

Frederick Beeler was married December 7, 1873, to Ella Jewell, the 
daughter of Basil and Mary (Wier) Jewell. Her father was a farmer of 
Sullivan county and a lieutenant in the Civil War. To Mr. and Mrs. Beeler 
have been born three children: Arthur, born September 11, 1875, who has 
been married twice, his first wife being Sadie Mull, and his second wife 
Lulu Rush. There was one daughter, Louisa, born to the first marriage. 
Arthur is a contractor in Irvington; Charles J., born November i, 1876, is 
now with his father in his store at Friendswood. He married Elizabeth 
Van Cleve; Orpha, born April 6, 1879, who married O. K. Osborn, a drug- 
gist of Martinsville ; they have one son, Frederick V. Osborn, who is named 
after his mother's father. 

Mr. Beeler is a stanch Democrat, and has always been interested in 
politics, taking an active part in both local and state campaigns. He has 



536 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

been well rewarded for his services to the party by being appointed post- 
master of Friendswood under both of Cleveland's administrations, and the 
service which he rendered to his fellow citizens showed that he was well 
worthv of the position. He is a valued member of the Free and Accepted 
Masons of West Newton, and also of the Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
lows. Morgan Lodge No. 211. Mooresville. He and his wife are members 
of the Methodist Episcopal church, and have been regular attendants for 
more than thirty years. Mr. Beeler has always been very much interested 
in church affairs and is now a class leader in his church. He is a worthy 
representative of that type of self-made man who have been important fac- 
tors in every community of our commonwealth. During his long and indus- 
trious career, he has not only gained the confidence of his fellow citizens, 
but as a man of force of character he has gained the respect and admiration 
of all of those with whom he has come in contact. 



ALPHEUS OSBORN. 



It is with marked satisfaction that the biographer reverts to the life of 
one who has attained success in any vocation requiring definiteness of pur- 
pose and determined action. Such a life, whether it be one of calm, con- 
secutive endeavor or of sudden meteoric accomplishments, must abound in 
l)Oth lesson and incentive and prove a guide to young men wdiose fortunes 
and destinies are still matters for the future to determine. The subject of 
this sketch is distinctively one of the representative agriculturists of Hen- 
dricks county. For a number of years he directed his efforts toward the 
goal of success and by patient continuance in well-doing succeeded at last 
in overcoming the many obstacles by which his pathway was beset, and 
is today considered one of the foremost farmers of the county. 

Alpheus Osborn, the son of Charles and Asenath (Hyatt) Osborn, 
was born in Randolph county, North Carolina, November 27, 1841. Charles 
Osborn received only three months' schooling, but from early boyhood was 
compelled to work early and late upon the farm. Upon his father's death 
he inherited the home farm and continued the operation of this tract until 
his marriage. In the fall of 1850. when Alpheus was only nine years of 
age, the father came to Indiana, settling in Clay township, Hendricks county. 
He had learned the blacksmith's trade in his native state and had followed 
this vocation for some time, but when he came to Hendricks countv he dis- 




ALPHEUS OSBORN 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 537 

continued the blacksmithing business and devoted all of his attention to his 
agricultural interests, which he continued to follow until his death. He mar- 
ried Asenath Hyatt, the daughter of Cuthbert and Hannah Hyatt, and to 
this union there were born five children : Elizabeth, the wife of Robert B. 
Reynolds; Hannah, who became the wife of John Newman; Cuthbert, who 
married Minerva Grime, and, after her death, wedded Asenath Carter; Mar- 
tha Sybil, the wife of Jonathan Carter, and Alpheus. 

Alpheus Osborn received some education in North Carolina and com- 
pleted his educational training in this county, having come with his parents 
to Indiana when he was nine years of age. He worked on the farm with 
his father until he was twenty-one years of age. 

Mr. Osborn was married to Emily L. Wheeler, the daughter of Alfred 
and Lydia Wheeler, on August 25, 1866, and to this union there were born 
five children : Allen E., who married Ella Phillips, and after her death, 
Leona Smith, and is the father of one child, Dewy H. ; Senith E. is the wife of 
Elmer Wells, and they have two children, Ernest and Alpheus ; Lydia J. is 
the wife of Morton Rudd, and they are the parents of three children, Albert, 
Lewis and Cecil : Albert married Blanche Wymer, and has one child, Lydia, 
who first married Roy Cooper and second Marshall Adams, and has one child. 
Leslie by the first marriage, and two children. Mildred and Josephine, by 
second marriage; Cecil married Ruth Gladstone; Mary, the fourth child of 
Mr. and Mrs. Osborn, married Arelius Dilworth. and has two children. 
Elsie and Edith ; Elsie married Hulbert Keys, and has two children, 
Herman and Mary; Charles, the youngest child of Mr. and Airs. Osborne, 
married Helen Daniels. 

The father of Mrs. Osborn was born in Guilford county. North Caro- 
lina, where he married Lydia May, also a native of that state, and in the 
fall of 1864 they came to this county and located in Clay township, where 
they reared a family of ten children: Mary, the wife of Peyton Cox; Malissa 
died at the age of twenty-seven; Lula married Frank Beard; Alonzo married 
Matilda Smith; Emma, the wife of Mr. Osborne; Irene, deceased; Erancis. 
deceased; Alfred, deceased; Addison, deceased; Corina married first John 
Burk and later John Pate, who is dead. The paternal grandparents had 
seven children: Jesse, who married L_ydia Bales; Charles, father of Alpheus 
Osborne; Samuel and Nathan, deceased; Daniel married first Lydia Walker 
and after her death Lydia Anthony and Rachel and Lydia. deceased. The 
paternal grandparents reared a family of nine children: Austin, who married 
Miss Armfield ; Manloe, who married Phoebe Beard ; William married Ruth 



538 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Beard; Elijah ninrried Miranda Fry; Alfred, who married Lydia Macy ; 
John, who married Miss Tucker; Mary became the wife o.f Dicks Coffin; 
Cvnthia, the wife of Isaiah Dillon; Kazia, who married William Davis. 

Mr. Osborn has been a Republican ever since the founding" of the 
partv, having cast his first vote for Abraham Lincoln. Although he has 
been a Republican for a half century he has never appealed to his party for 
an office. He is a member of the Friends church and takes an active interest 
in all of the work of the church. His has been a useful life and one which 
reflects credit upon himself, and through all the years in which he has lived 
in this county his record has been such as to wnn him a place among the 
representative men of Hendricks county. 



ALVA A. ROSS. 



The gentleman to whom the reader's attention is now directed was not 
favored by inherited wealth or the assistance of influential friends, but in 
spite of these, by perseverance, industry and a wise economy, he has at- 
tained a comfortable station in life, and is well and favorably known through- 
out Hendricks county as a result of the industrious and honorable life he 
has lived. Lie is a modern and scientific agriculturist, thoroughly up-to-date 
in all his methods and, while advancing his individual interests, he does 
not neglect his duties as a citizen. 

Alva A. Ross, the son of Joseph and Susan Ross, was born at Avon, 
Indiana, in Hendricks county. May 21, 1857. His parents were born and 
reared near Cincinnati, Ohio, and moved to Avon, Indiana, several years 
before the War of the Rebellion and remained there until Alva A. was 
about ten years of age, when they moved to the farm where Mr. Ross is 
now living. 

Alva A. Ross received his education in the common schools of Wash- 
ington townshp and started early in life to learn the practical side of farm- 
ing. That he is well acquainted with all of that store of information which 
the successful farmer must have at his fingers' ends, is shown by his well- 
kept farm of today. While he carries on a general system of farming, 
he has made a specialty of raising black and white Crested Black Polish 
chickens and white Indian Runner ducks. He has not only found this a 
pleasure, but a profit as well, and is now recognized as one of the leading 
poultry fanciers of Indiana. He has won several prizes of silver cups at 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 539 

Indianapolis at poultry shows and in 191 1, 1912 and 1913 won the silver cup 
for his Indian Runner ducks at Danville. 

Mr. Ross was married on November 5, 1879, to Emma Swank, the 
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. David Swank, of Center township, this county. 
Mrs. Ross was born October 19, 1857. and to this first marriage of Mr. Ross 
were born three children : Mrs. Ethel Strickler, of Danville, who was born 
August 10, 1880; Mrs. Hazel McClain. of Washington township, this countv, 
who was born May 2, 1885, and Flora G., who was born March 7, 1888, and 
died April 29. 1888. The mother of these children died August 11, 1889, 
and subsequently, in 1894, Mr. Ross married Ida Keith, the daughter of 
Mr. and Mrs. Henry Keith. 

Fraternally, Mr. Ross is a member of the Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows at Danville, while religiously, he and the members of his family are 
faithful and consistent members of the Regular Baptist church. He w^as a 
Republican until 1912, but since then has been a Progressive. He and his 
wife are members of the Rebekahs at Danville, and Mrs. Ross belongs to 
the Woman's Relief Corps. Mr. and Mrs. Ross are popular members of the 
social circles in which they move, and have long been regarded with esteem 
and respect by all who have the honor of their acquaintance. 



ELIEL NEWBY. 



Dependent very largely upon his own resources from his early youth, 
Eliel Newby, of Guilford township, has attained no insignificant success, and 
though he may have, like most men of affairs, encountered obstacles and 
met with reverses, he has pressed steadily forward, ever willing to work for 
the end he had in view. His tenacity and fortitude are due, no doubt, in a 
large measure, to the worthy traits inherited from his sterling ancestors, 
who were among the early pioneers of Hendricks county. The first Newby s 
resided in Hendricks county more than eighty-five years ago, and during all 
of these years the Newbys have been influential in the material and civic 
advancement of their county, and by their high ideals and good principles 
have ever thought to perpetuate the proper views of life. 

Eliel Newby, the son of Harmon and Rebecca (Hyatt) Newby, was 
born in Guilford township, this county, November 5, 1862. Harmon Newby 
was born in this county on the same farm which was pre-empted by his 
father in this township in the year 1828, thereby giving the Newby family 



540 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

eighty-six years of history in this county. Harmon Newby left Hendricks 
county for Kansas in 1881 and Hved and died on a farm which he pur- 
chased in that state. Mrs. Harmon Newby was born in Randolph county, 
Indiana, and met her husband in Hamilton county, where she moved with 
her parents. Mr. and Mrs. Harmon Newby were parents of five children: 
William, a farmer in the state of Washington, married and has two children; 
Stephen, a blacksmith of Jasonville, who is married and has three children; 
Jesse, a farmer of Hamilton county, who is married and has six children ; 
Eliel, whose history is herein presented; Thomas Emory, of Kansas, who 
is married and has one child. Harmon Newby and his wife both died in 
Kansas in 1899. 

Eliel Newby attended the district schools of Guilford township, and at 
an early age decided that he wished to become a farmer. Until his mar- 
riage he worked on his father's farm and on the other farms in the im- 
mediate neighborhood, with the result that when he was married he was 
already one of the best farmers in his township. In this day of specialization 
it is becoming increasingly customary for farmers to have some hobby, and 
with Mr. Newby it is fruit raising. Some years ago he became interested 
in the culture of small fruits and has now under cultivation several acres of 
his farm in fruits of various kinds, and has found it a very lucrative addi- 
tion to his regular income from his farm. He owns ten acres of land, of 
which five are in orchard. 

Mr. Newby was married February 19, 1889, to Mary A. Zimmerman, 
of Washington township, the daughter of Joel and Elizabeth (Cole) Zim- 
merman. Mrs. Newby's father was a wagon builder by trade and reared a 
family of seven children. Mr. and Mrs. Zimmerman are both dead. He 
died on December 25, 1904, and she on April 15, 1902. There have been 
five children born to Mr. and Mrs. Newby: Jessie Mae, born April 10, 
1890, who is the wife of Charles A. Johnson, of Indianapolis; Florence E., 
born April 30, 1892, who is still at home; Horace E.. born November 18, 
1894; Fred E., born x\pril 18, 1896; Lester J., born May 9, 1901. The 
members of the Newby family are adherents of the Friends church. Mr. 
Newby has achieved success, because he has given attention along right 
channels and has been an advocate of honest li\'ing and dealing with his fellow 
men. Though never animated with great ambition for public honor, he has 
ever lent his aid in serving the general interests of his locality, and is well 
fortified in his convictions, being at all times public spirited in his attitude 
towards all things for the benefit of the locality in which he lives. Polit- 
ically, he supports the Republican part}', while, religiously, he is a birthright 
member of the Friends church. 



MKNDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 54I 

THOMAS BRITTON KINNAN. 

The following is a sketch of a plain, honest man of affairs, who, by 
correct methods and a strict regard for the interests of his fellow men, was 
for many years one of the prominent residents of Hendricks county. As 
postmaster of one of the important towns of the county and as recorder of 
Hendricks county, he won for himself distinctive prestige in the history of 
the locality. He would be the last man to sit for romance or become the 
subject of a fancy sketch, but nevertheless his life presents much that is 
interesting and valuable, and may be studied with profit by the young, whose 
careers are yet to be achieved. He is one of those whose integrity and 
strength of character have forced themselves to the front and as a result he 
has commanded the respect of all those citizens of his county who have 
known him so many years. 

Thomas Britton Kinnan was born near Vernon, Jennings county. In- 
diana, April ij, 1846. He is one of nine children born to Thomas and 
Katherine Ellen Kinnan. His father was a native of New Jersey and his 
mother of Maryland. They first settled in Jennings county, Indiana, about 
1845. He went to Iowa in 1852, from Wayne county. Indiana, and died in 
1852. The mother died in Marion county, Indiana, in 1885. 

Thomas B. Kinnan was educated in the common schools of Alarion and 
Hendricks counties and when a young man came to Plainfield, Hendricks 
county. Here he was married March 2, 1869, to Mary Barker Conarroe, 
and to this union have been born two children, Harry Joel and Daisy Brit- 
ton. Harry J. was born June 23, 1871, and was married on May 30, 1908, 
to Rose Althea Myers, and lived at St. Paul, Minnesota, where he was a 
seedsman until he removed to Indianapolis, Indiana. The daughter, Daisy 
Britton, was born July 8, 1881, and was for many years a teacher in the 
public schools. She was married on January 17, 1907, to Robert Clark 
Coffy, of Indianapolis, and has one daughter, Katherine, who was born May 
22, 1910. Mr. and Mrs. Coffy are now living in Tacoma, Washington. 

Mr. Kinnan was appointed postmaster at Plainfield by President Arthur 
in 1883, and sen-ed until the incoming Democratic administration of Cleve- 
land. In 1886 he was elected recorder of Hendricks county on the Republi- 
can ticket and served in that oftice for four years. His son, Harry J., was 
chief deputy under his father during his full term of office. As postmaster 
and as recorder Mr. Kinnan was an efficient official and administered the 
duties of his important offices with judgment and ability. Mr. Kinnan lived 



542 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

in Hendricks county until 1904, when he moved to Indianapolis, and in the 
fall of 1910 removed to Guilford township, where he bought six and one- 
half acres of land. 

Mr. Kinnan is a meniljer of the Free and Accepted Masons, the In- 
dependent Order of Odd Fellows, the Knights of Pythias and the Grand 
Army of the Republic. He and his wife are members of the Christian 
church, of which they are faithful and loyal supporters. Mr. Kinnan has 
led a busy and useful life, and as a public official and as a private citizen he 
has lived such a life as to merit the esteem in which he is held by his fellow 
citizens. He enlisted on August 10, 1862, in Company C, Seventieth In- 
diana Volunteer Infantry, under General Harrison, for eight months and 
re-enlisted in Company I, Sixty-third Indiana Volunteer Infantry. He was 
discharged April 10, 1866, and is a member of the Grand Army of the 
Republic at Danville, Indiana. 



HORACE REEVE. 



In his special line of effort, probably no man in central Indiana has 
achieved a more phenomenal success or a larger record than Horace Reeve, 
who is not only a farmer of large importance, but is also a dairyman of 
high reputation. For a quarter of a century he has given his particular at- 
tention to the dairy business and because of the eminent success which he has 
achieved he has gained a reputation which extends far beyond the borders of 
his own locality. Sound judgment, wise discrimination and good common 
sense have so entered into his make-up as to enable him to carry on his 
business along lines that have insured his success. Because of his splendid 
record and his high personal qualities, he is eminently deserving of repre- 
sentation in the annals of his county. 

Horace Reeve, the youngest of six children of Charles and Malinda 
(Jessup) Reeve, was born in Guilford township, this county, November 7, 
1853. The other five children of the family were: Jonathan F., deceased; 
John J. ; Sarah ; Hadley, deceased, and Mary. Charles Reeve was born in 
New Jersey in 181 6 and came with his parents to this county in his youth. 
His parents first settled in Marion county, near Indianapolis. Charles Reeve 
was a man of more than ordinary ability and before he reached his majority 
he was engaged by the local authorities to teach school in his own township. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 543 

and for the next three years he followed this profession and was still teach- 
ing when he was married. His wife was the daughter of John and Ruth 
Jessup, of Guilford township; she died at the age of forty-two. Charles 
Reeve lived on the farm on which he moved in 1858, until his death, in 1897. 

Horace Reeve received a good education at home at the hands of his 
worthy father and in the subscription schools, which were conducted in his 
neighborhood. After completing his common school education he worked 
for his father on the home farm. 

Mr. Reeve was married February 4, 1881, to Flora E. Allen, and to 
this union was born four children: Alice M., deceased at the age of nine; 
Wendell A., born September 26, 1884, a graduate of Earlham College and 
now with the Utah Copper Mining Company at Bingham, Utah; J, Evelyn, 
of Indianapolis, who married Lawrence H. Barrett, a member of the Evans 
Milling Company, has two children, John R. and Barbara; Wilma, born in 
1890 and a graduate of Earlham College. The first wife of Mr. Reeve died 
April I, 1898, and on May 28, 1900, he was married to Olma Hadley, the 
daughter of Atlas and Elizabeth Hadley. His second wife died July 11, 
1905. 

Mr. Reeve has been a life-long supporter of the Republican party, but 
has never been active in politics. His interests for the past twenty years 
have been centered in his dairy, and he has at the present time one of the 
most expensive and successful dairies conducted by any farmer in central 
Indiana. The state board of inspection has complimented him upon the 
arrangement and equipment of his dairy and upon the sanitary manner in 
which it is managed. Mr. Reeve takes an interest in every department of 
public life which affects his fellow citizens and the general advancement of 
the community and has been an efficient influence in its progress and achieve- 
ment. He is a faithful member of the Friends church, as are the other 
members of his family and takes a deep interest in the spiritual work of the 
church. His career has been a consistent and honorable one throughout. 
Because of his integrity and accomplishment, he is entitled to the sincere 
confidence and good will of all who know him. He and his good wife have 
raised a family which is an honor and credit to them, and in these children 
may be seen the influences which have molded their characters and made 
them the valuable members of society which they are today. The family 
residence is one of the most charming homes in the community, being sub- 
stantially built of brick and surrounded by a spacious and well-kept lawn and 
beautiful forest trees. 



1^44 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

SOLOMON D. EDWARDS. 

Among the enterprising and progressive citizens of Hendricks county 
none stands higher in the esteem of his fellow citizens than the gentleman 
whose name forms the caption of this sketch. He has long been actively 
engaged in agricultural pursuits in this county and the years of his residence 
here have but served to strengthen the feeling of admiration on the part of 
his fellow men owing to the honorable life he has led and the worthy ex- 
ample he has set to the younger generation, consequently the publishers of 
this biographical compendium are glad to give such a worthy character repre- 
sentation in this work. 

Solomon D. Edwards, the son of John and Beulah (Perkins) Edwards, 
was born in Clay township, Hendricks county, Indiana, on August zy, 1847. 
His father was a native of North Carolina and came to Indiana in 1833, 
settling near Coatesville, in this county, and here he met his wife and after 
their marriage he entered some government land, which he cleared and im- 
proved upon until about 1861, at which time he purchased a farm of one 
hundred and forty acres near Plainfield, which he sold after a few years 
and went to Oregon. There he settled near Newberg and divided some of 
the land adjoining that town into town lots and sold them. He remained 
in Newberg, Oregon, until his death, becoming one of the substantial citi- 
zens of that town. To John and Beulah (Perkins) Edwards were born 
seven children : Asa, who married Lavina Kenworthy ; John, who married 
Lucinda Hodson; Nathaniel; Abagail, wife of Henry Ballinger; Lorriane, 
wife of Fred Downing; Nancy, wife of Levi Crews, and Solomon D. 

Solomon D. Edwards attended school in the district schools of his home 
township and after leaving school he worked on his uncle's farm until the 
latter's death. On January 4. 1866. he married Mary Hornaday, who was 
born February 4, 1847, the daughter of Daniel and Delilah (Farmer) Horna- 
day, and to this union were born six children: Minnie B., the wife of W. 
O. Brown, is the mother of four children, Harold, Harley, Hildred and 
Hallie; Roscoe, who married Bertha Kendall and has three children. Christ- 
ian, Kenneth and Bernard R. ; Charles E., who married Ida Job, and they 
have two children, Pauline and Mary; John, who married Mary Wills, and 
has one child, John, Jr.; Myrtle, who became the wife of Walter Hodson, 
has two children, Blair and Dalta; Maude married Verle Moon and has 
two children, Percy and lona. The parents of Mrs. Edwards had a family 
of four children: William, who married Nettie Baker; Martha, the wife 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 545 

of Emery Triddle; Mary, wife of Mr. Edwards; Eliza, wife of L. Marten. 
Mrs. Edwards died on April 13, 1914. 

Mr. Edwards is allied with the new Progressive party, believing that 
in the principles advocated by it will be found a solution of most of the 
great political questions before the American people today. Fraternally, 
he is a member of the Knights of Pythias, while in his religious faith he 
holds to the Friends church, and is interested in the efforts of his church to 
better the condition of the community in which he lives. Mrs. Edwards 
was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Edwards has lived 
nearly three-score and ten years in this county, and during all of that time his 
influence has ever been on the right side of all civic and moral questions per- 
taining to the welfare of the community. For this reason he is rightly re- 
garded as one of the representative men of Hendricks county, and is well 
worthy a mention in this biographical volume. 

From an obituary published at the time of Mrs. Edwards' death, the 
following beautiful words are quoted: 

"No mother could have been more kind and loving; her thoughts were 
always for others and self was forgotten; always ready to lend a help- 
ing hand to those in need. She had been looking forward to the time when 
life's work would be over and expressed herself as waiting for the sum- 
mons and that the change would be a happy one. When alone much of her 
time was spent in singing the sweet songs of Zion and talking to Jesus. 

"She wanted her flowers while here that she might enjoy them, and this 
desire was realized by the kind and affectionate devotion of her dear ones. 

"She leaves a husband, six children and thirteen grandchildren, one sister 
and many friends who will sadly miss her. The family circle is broken, 
mother has passed into the beyond, and her voice no more you will hear; 
her memory will ever be sweet to you. 

" 'Dearest Mother, thou hast left us. 
And our loss we deeply feel, 
) But 'tis God who has bereft us; 

He our sorrows all can heal.' 

"The following lines were favorite songs of her's : 

" 'Fade from my sight each glittering gem, 
Vanish each glittering diadem; 
Pleasure no more I find in them, 
Jesus was crowned with thorns. 

(35) 



54<^) HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Not for me are those fading joys, 
Not for me are those earthly toys, 
Mine be the tears at Jesus' feet. 

Mine be eternal day. 
What though my life be full of tears. 
Sorrow may crown my weary years ; 
Mine be the hope when Christ appears, 

Mine be eternal joy.' 

"Another one was : 

" 'O could I soar to worlds above, 
That blessed abode of peace and love, 
How gladly would I mount and fly 
\ On angel's wings to worlds on high.' " 



HENRY D. BARLOW. 



Prominent in the affairs of Hendricks county and distinguished as a citi- 
zen whose influence is far extended beyond the limits of the community 
honored by his residence, the name of Henry D. Barlow stands out a con- 
spicuous figure among farmers of the locality of which this volume treats. 
All of his undertakings have been actuated by noble motives and high resolves 
and characterized by breadth of wisdom and strong individuality and his 
success and achievements but represent the result of fit utilization of innate 
talent in directing effort along those lines where mature judgment and rare 
discrimination lead the way. 

Henry D. Barlow, the son of James M. and Sarah E. Barlow, was born 
September 9, 1874. in Brown township, this county. His father was born 
September 13, 1845, '^^ Washington township, Hendricks county, Indiana, the 
son of Harvey R. and Sarah E. (Smith) Barlow. Harvey Barlow and wife 
were the parents of eight children: Hannah Jane, deceased; James M., whose 
sketch is presented elsewhere in this volume; Ruth Ann Osborn; Mrs. 
Myra Alice Medsker, deceased; Harrison S. ; Harvey M., and two who died 
in infancy. The great-grandfather of Henry D. Barlow was Enoch Barlow, 
whose father was a Revolutionary soldier. Enoch Barlow came to Indiana in 
1828, settling near Brownsburg. in this county, where he spent the remainder 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 547 

of his life, dying there November, 1837, his widow surviving him some years, 
her death occurring in June, 1856. 

Henry D. Barlow w^as accorded such education as w^as given in the 
district schools of his township, and at an early age began to work upon his 
father's farm. He has lived on the place where he is now residing since he 
was ten years of age. He has improved his farm and stocked it with mod- 
ern farming implements and all the necessary accessories for successful 
farming, and as a tiller of the soil he has been one of the most successful 
and progressive of his township. He combines the raising of grain with the 
buying and selling of live stock and thereby, by the use of good judgment, 
he has been more than ordinarily successful. 

Mr. Barlow was married September 9, 1896, to Minnie M. Douglass, 
daughter of John H. and Mary S. Douglass, of Guilford township, this 
county. She was born November 17, 1876, in Plainfield, and was educated 
in the common schools and academy of that place. Mr. and Mrs. Barlow are 
the parents of six children: Josephine Barlow, born May 11, 1897, died 
August 18, 1899; Milton Paul, born April 16, 1901, and now a pupil in the 
Plainfield schools; Helen, born April 18, 1905; Marjorie, born October 13, 
1907, died July 2^, 1909; Mary Elizabeth, born June 19, 1911 ; Frank Phil- 
lips Barlow, born May 21, 1914. Mr. and Mrs. Barlow are very proud of 
their children and are giving them every educational advantage in order to 
equip them for useful careers in their later life. 

Mr. Barlow is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, 
both subordinate and encampment, and also of the Knights of Pythias, both 
lodges being at Plainfield. Mr. Barlow^ is a man whom to know is to 
admire, for he has led a most exemplary life and has sought to do his whole 
duty in all relations with his fellow men. He is a man of honor, public 
spirit, charitable impulses and unswerving integrity and enterprise, and is 
consequently deserving of mention in a history of his county. 



WILLIAM ALLEN MILLS. 

Fealty to facts in the analyzation of the character of a citizen of the 
type of William Allen Mills, a well-known and successful resident of Guil- 
ford township, is all that is required to make a biographical sketch interest- 
ing to those who have at heart the good name of the community honored 
by his residence, because it is the honorable reputation of the man of stand- 



548 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ing and affairs, more than any other consideration, that gives character and 
stability to the body poHtic. While advancing his individual interests, he 
has never lost sight of his obligations to the community in general, where 
tor many years he has held a high place in popular confidence and esteem. 

The state of Ohio has often boasted that it has furnished some of tne 
l)est citizens of every state west of it, and the history of Hendricks county 
shows that many of the best citizens of this county were born in the good 
old Buckeye state. William Allen Mills, the son of James and Ruth (W^al- 
ton) Mills, was born in Ohio on September 20, 1849. James Mills was 
born in 181 8 in Ohio and died in this county July 31, 1903. His wife was 
born in Ohio in 1826 and died April 30, 1901, in this county. A few years 
after James Mills was married he and his famih' came to Hendricks county 
and settled in Washington township on one hundred and sixty acres of land, 
which is now the home of Edward Mills, the brother of William Allen. 

William Allen Mills received his early education in Richmond, Indiana, 
and early in life showed an aptitude for books. Before reaching his major- 
ity, he started to teach school and for three years followed this noble pro- 
fession. In the meantime he attended Earlham College at Richmond, in 
order to better prepare himself for teaching. However, upon his marriage, 
in 1874, he decided to leave the school room and engage in farming and in 
1875 he moved on to the farm where he now lives. The experience gained 
in the school room has not been amiss upon the farm, and the same perse- 
verance and attention to details which made him a successful teacher has 
brought a full share of success to him in his agricultural pursuits. 

Mr. Mills was married October 28. 1874, to Eliza Candace Spray, the 
daughter of J. W. and A. W. Spray. Mr. Spray died in 1902, and his 
widow is still living, aged eighty-seven years, and now makes her home 
with Mr. and Mrs. Mills. Five children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Mills: Walton, of Indianapolis, who is married and has one daughter; 
Abbie, of Indianapolis, who married Ernest Hav/kins, a nurseryman, and 
has three children, Clarence, Mary and Catherine E. ; Clarence, deceased ; 
Maurice, a nurseryman of Indianapolis; James, who will graduate from a 
veterinary college, Indianapolis, in 1914; John, who was born in 1894 and 
attended the Plainfield Academy. He intends to follow the occupation of 
his father. 

Mr. Mills gives his support to the Republican party and takes an in- 
terest in the political issues of the day, although he has never been a candi- 
date for any political office. He and the members of his family are adher- 
ents of the Center Friends church, Marion county. He lends his support to 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 549 

all public enterprises which are for the public welfare of his community and 
is known as a public-spirited man whose influence is always on the right side 
of e\ery public question. During his long residence in this township he has 
always been regarded as a man of upright principles, kind-hearted to those 
in need. Few in this community are better or more favorably known than he. 



JOHN TUCKER. 

The history of the loyal sons and' representatix'e citizens of Hendricks 
county would not be complete .should the name that heads this review be 
omitted. \Mien the fierce fire of rebellion was raging throughout the South- 
land, threatening to destroy the Union, he responded with patriotic fervor to 
the call for volunteers and in some of the bloodiest battles for which that 
great war was noted proved his loyalty to the government he loved so w-ell. 
During a useful life in the region where he lives he has labored diligently to 
promote the interests of the people, working earnestly and with little regard 
for his personal advancement or ease. He has been devoted to the public 
welfare and in all of his relations his highest ambitions have been to benefit 
the community and advance its standard of citizenship. 

John Tucker, a worthy farmer and gallant veteran of the Civil War and 
son of a Civil-war veteran, was born January i6, 1845, in Guilford town- 
ship, this county. His parents were Thornton and Margaret (Bryant) 
Tucker, the father being a native of Virginia and his mother of Kentucky. 
Thornton Tucker came to this county from Virginia wdth his sister when he 
was fourteen vears of age and lived here the remainder of his life. After 
his marriage he located on a farm which he purchased from John Pritchett. 
Upon the outbreak of the Civil War Thornton Tucker was forty-four years 
of age, his two oldest sons, William and John, were less than twenty, but 
before the close of the war the father and two sons enlisted in the service. 
The father enlisted in Company D. Twenty-ninth Regiment, Indiana Volun- 
teer Infantry, and was discharged June 28, 1865. He died in October of 
the same year from disease which he contracted in the army. John enlisted 
February 28, 1863. in the Second Indiana Battery of Field Artillery, and 
was discharged July 3, 1865. He was wath Banks in the Red River cam- 
paign in the Southwest and in all of the campaigns of the West during the 
last tw^o years of the w^ar, being also at the battle of Nashville. Mr. and 
Mrs. Thornton Tucker were the parents of ten children: William; John, 



550 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

whose history is ])rietiy reviewed in this article; Alary A., deceased; George, 
deceased; Harriett E., deceased; Louisa J., deceased; Milo A.; Florence E. ; 
Clara I)., deceased; Hiram D.. who died in infancy. 

1lie mother of these children died December 30, 1895. Immediately 
after the close of the war John Tucker returned to his home county and 
started in life as a farmer, and has continued at that occupation all his life. 
He was married Aaigust 25, 1869, to Margaret J. Almond, the daughter of 
James and Emily (Wier) Almond. Mr. Almond was a farmer in Guilford 
township and he and his wife reared a large family of ten children. Mr. 
and Mrs. John Tucker ha\'e long been faithful members of the Christian 
church and to that denomination they render generous support in all its 
activities. He has been a life-long Republican and is interested in the various 
political features of the day. He keeps well informed on important ques- 
tions of the hour and is able to give reasons for his views on the various 
questions which are today confronting the American people. Because of 
his sterling" work, uncompromising integrity, courteous manners and con- 
genial disposition, he has won and retained the warm regard of all with 
whom he associates. 



ERASMUS D. THOMAS. 

The true measure of individual success is determined by what one has 
accomplished. An enumeration of those men of a past generation who were 
successful in their life work and at the same time left the impress of their 
strong personalities upon the community, men who won honor and recog- 
nition for themselves, and at the same time conferred honor on the locality 
in which they resided, would be incomplete were there failure to make specific 
mention of the gentleman whose name initiates this paragraph, for, although 
Erasmus D. Thomas is now sleeping the sleep of the just, his influence still 
pervades the lives of those who were so fortunate as to enjoy his acquaintance 
and his name is deeply engraved on the pages of Hendricks county's history. 
His life was a busy one, for he never allowed anything to interfere with his 
Christian obligations or the faithful performance of his church duties, so that 
his entire religious life was a steady effort for the worth of Christian doc- 
trine, the purity and grandeur of Christian principles and the beauty and 
elevation of Christian character. I'ure, constant and noble was the spiritual 
flame that burned in and illumined the mortal tenement of the subject of this 
memoir, and the superficial observer can have but small appreciation of his 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 551 

intrinsic spirituality. His faith was fortified !»• the deepest study, and the 
Ch™tian verities were with him the matters of most concern au,ong the 
rhanp-es and chances of this mortal hfe. 

Iralmus D. Thomas, one of the grand old men of Hendncks county, 
was born in Faye.te county. Ind.ana. November .., 1821 -d d-ed nea 
Danville, Indiana, June 16, 1907. He was the son of Dav.d S. and Phoebe 
(Cole) Thomas, both natives of New York, where they were rear d and 
marned Thev came to Indiana shortly after their marnage setthng m 
Fayltte county-, where they entered land from the government before Indiana 
was admitted to the Union in i8t6. . , t, i ^f 

Erasmus D Thomas secured a very limited education m the schools of 
Fayette countv, and when a young man resided a short time in Tipton cotmty. 
He'helped lay out the town of Tipton while that county was a w. deniess 
and wal one of its first town ofi^cers, in pioneer tunes. "^-^^ ^m there 
,0 Hancock countv, then settled near Acton for a short time. In 1864 he 
noved to Hendricks county, and lived on a farm northwest oj Da- - 
Center township. His whole life was spent in the service of God and n an 
either as a minister of the Gospel or as a teacher of the youth. For more 
imn fiftv vears he was in the active service of teaching the glad tidings of 
salvation. ' Before entering the ministry he was engaged in teaching in he 
public schools for a time. Forty-four years of his ministry were in Danville, 
wh e he had charge of the Baptist church. The good that such a man can 
do is incalculable. He preached in a period when niinisters were very poorty 
paid indeed, and when it was thought that they should live even as did the 
disciples of Biblical times. .,,.,, r 

Rev E D Thomas was twice married, his first wife being Mary G, 
Thompson, of Favette county. To this first marriage there were born eight 
Ih'Zi, all of whom are living: John, of Wiunepeg. Canada ; Mrs. Phoebe 
E Morgason, of Bedford. Iowa: Charles, of Enterprise, Oregon; Lewis E., 
of Ashlev, Ohio; Mrs. Hattie Tnider, of Fairchild, Washington; Wilham 
W iving between North Salem and Montclair; Albert M of .Marion 
coimtv, liKliana; Erasmus W.. pastor of the Baptist chtirch in Danville who 
ucceeded his father as pastor of this church: Edward D.. of Seat le. Wash- 
ington, and Marshall, of Cordelle, Georgia. His first wife died in 1870, 
and in .871 Mr Thomas was married to Mrs. Mary E, (Rosborough) Hol- 
conibe of Gibson countv, Indiana, and she is still living with her daughter in 
3anapolis. She was a daughter of James and Sarah (Waters) Ros- 
borough, a highly respected family of Gibson county in this state To this 
second marriage were born six children: Dr. Harvey C, of Indianapolis; 



552 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Joseph, who died in infancy; Frank W., of Sacramento, Cahfornia; Mary T.. 
the wife of Dr. A. C. Pebworth, of Indianapolis; Raymond D., of Indian- 
apoHs; Mrs. Nellie Mitchell, with whom the mother makes her home in 
Indianapolis. 

The life of the late Rev. E. D. Thomas was indeed a busy one, and dur- 
ing more than three score years he served his God and his fellow men faith- 
fully in the pulpit and in the school room. Always calm and straightforward, 
when he believed he was on the right path nothing could swerve him from it, 
and to him home life was a sacred trust, and his greatest enjoyment was in 
his children and his children's children. His life was a blessing and a bene- 
diction to the community in which he spent so many of his years, and his 
memory will long be revered by his many friends and acquaintances. 



WILLIAM C. OSBORNE. 



The career of William C. Osborne, the president of the First National 
Bank, of Danville, presents many interesting incidents, but in this brief record 
it will not be profitable to go into his life in detail. Prominently identified 
with banking interests of Danville and Hendricks county for twenty years, 
he has made his influence felt in the financial circles of his community during 
that time. His father and grandfather were identified with the First National 
Bank of Danville early in its history, and some member of the family has 
been connected with this institution for the past half century. In the course 
of the half century which has elapsed since this bank was established Dan- 
ville has grown from a mere village to a prosperous little city, with well 
paved streets and beautiful residences. During all of these years the bank 
has constantly enjoyed the fullest measure of public confidence, passing 
through every period of general financial stringency with stability unshaken 
and credit unimpaired. The bank conducts all the departments of commercial 
banking, making loans, discounts, the buying and selling of government bonds 
and exchange, issuing foreign drafts, letters of credit and making commercial 
loans. The safe deposit vaults are equipped in the most approved and modern 
manner and afford excellent facilities of the safe keeping of papers and val- 
uables. 

William C. Osborne, the son of Ednumd and Martha (Cook) Osborne, 
w^as born January i6, 1865, on a farm near Kokomo, in Howard county, 
Indiana. His father was a native of Orange county, this state, but came to 




WILLIAM C. OSBORNE 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 553 

Hendricks county when a young lad with his parents and lived here until 
after his marriage, when he moved to Howard county, where he followed the 
occupation of a farmer for many years, and late in life moved to Hendricks 
county, where his death occurred. Edmund Osborne and wife were the 
parents of five children: John H., deceased; William C. ; Rosaltha ; Lindley 
M., and Emma, deceased. 

William C. Osborne received his education in the common schools of 
Howard and Hendricks counties, this state, and then entered the Westtown 
Schools, near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a school under the management of 
the Eriends church. After leaving school he began teaching and for several 
years followed this profession, during which time he taught in several states 
in the Union. He incidentally carried on farming to some extent while teach- 
ing. In 1895 he permanently located in Danville and became associated with 
the Eirst National Bank as bookkeeper. He rapidly acquired the rudiments 
of banking and in the course of ten years has risen from the position of 
bookkeeper to that of the presidency of the bank. He was made cashier in 
1899, and in 1909 was elected president, which position he still holds. Air. 
Osborne is an able and far-seeing financier, being progressive and conserva- 
tive and has had for officers men of the highest integrity and business ability. 
The policy of the bank is conservative and its business is largely confined to 
commercial banking, a very large percentage of its deposits being indi- 
vidual and mercantile deposits with sufficient bank deposits to furnish an ex- 
cellent par list for all of its customers. 

Mr. Osborne was married October 24, 1900, to Christine Rogers, daugh- 
ter of Jonathan and Anne (Valentine) Rogers, natives of Wayne county, 
Indiana, but living in Georgia at the time of the marriage of their daughter. 
Mr. and Mrs. Osborne are the parents of five children. Anne Martha,' Elor- 
ence. Elizabeth, Miriam E. and Edmund R., all of whom are still at home 
with their parents. 

Mr. Osborne takes an active interest in everything pertaining to the civic, 
moral, intellectual and commercial welfare of his county, city and community. 
A Republican in politics, Mr. Osborne has always taken an active interest in 
political affairs, but has never felt that he could spare the time from his banking 
interests to take an active part in political campaigns. He is a member of the 
board of trustees of the Central Normal College of Danville, an educational 
institution which has the name of doing good work in its chosen field. He 
is also president of the board of trustees of Earlham College Endowment 
Eund. He was president and one of the organizers of the Indianapolis, 
Danville & Western electric line, the company which built the present road 



554 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

between Danville and Indianapolis, and much of the success of that eariy 
company was due to his untiring efforts. Fraternally, he is a member of the 
Independent Order of Odd ]'>llows, while he and all of his family are earnest 
members of the Friends church, to which they contribute generously of their 
time and substance. Mr. Osborne is a man of good business abilities, sterling 
integrity and fine personal address, and the history of his county would not 
be complete without a record of his achievements. 



JOEL NEWLIN. 



When such men as Joel Newlin die, not only the public heart is filled 
with sadness and abiding sense of loss, but there is within the sanctuary of 
his own household a depth of sorrow that cannot be fathomed, for with all 
his business ability and public usefulness, it was perhaps in his domestic life 
and social relations that Mr. Newlin appeared to the best advantage. Ac- 
cording to those who knew him best, no one ever heard a whisper against 
his integrity. He was a temperate, w^ell-controlled man and the idol of his 
family; he was of a genial, social nature, full, at times, of a quaint, homely, 
simple humor, that had about it the freshness of childhood ; he loved his 
children and young folks in general, and many a young man was helped and 
encouraged by him in starting out in life. He was a very agreeable com- 
panion, manifesting a desire to please those with whom he came in daily 
contact and he left to his friends, as his choicest legacy, the remembrance 
of a character without a stain. 

Joel Newlin, one of the best loved men of Hendricks county, was born 
August 26, 1824, in Clinton county, Ohio, and died in Guilford township, 
Hendricks county, Indiana, January 21, 1913. His parents were John and 
Esther (Stubs) Newlin, he being one of twelve children, all of whom are 
now deceased. John Newlin came from North Carolina and settled in Ohio, 
where he lived his whole life. After the death of John Newlin in Ohio, his 
widow and the family came to Hendricks county, settling in Guilford town- 
ship March t^l, 1834. In the fall of 1835 the widow of John Newlin bought 
the farm where the family have since lived. 

Joel Newlin, thus early bereft of a father's love and care, helped to 
assume the responsibility of caring for the family, and the strength of char- 
acter which w'as thus developed proved of very much assistance to him in 
his later life. He received only a meagre education and upon reaching 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 555 

young manhood he was married, on August 13. 1846, to Mary Osborn, and 
to this union were born six children, Anna, Addison, EHas, David, Martha 
and Calvin. 

Calvin Newlin, the youngest of the six children born to his parents, 
was born on February 5, 1863. He was reared on the homestead farm and 
received his education in the schools of .his township. He was married on 
August 13, 1885, to Lenora Haworth, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Rich- 
ard M. Haworth, of Clinton county, Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. Calvin Newlin 
are the parents of six children: Bertha, born in October, 1886; Ada M., 
born May 7, 1890; William McKinley, born February 7, 1892; Edna, born 
May 15, 1895; Grace, born March 29, 1897; Evelyn, born December 23, 
1904. Calvin Newlin, as well as all the members of his family, is a member 
of the Friends church, and to which they give freely of their means. Mr. 
Newlin has always farmed on the old home place on which his father lived 
for seventy-eight years. The subject carries on general farming on one 
hundred and fifty-seven acres of land. He never aspired for office and votes 
the Republican ticket. His father was an old-line Whig and later a Repub- 
lican. 



DR. EMMETT T. DAVIS. 

Success in what are properly termed the learned professions is a legiti- 
mate result of merit and painstaking endeavor. In commercial lines one 
may come into possession of a lucrative business through inheritance or gift, 
but professional advancement is gained only by critical study and consecu- 
tive research. It has only been within the last few years that special atten- 
tion has been paid to the diseases of live stock, but now there are scores of 
colleges which have special chairs devoted to diseases of horses, cattle, swine, 
etc. In large cities there are men who do nothing else but minister to 
canine ills, and feline doctors who cater only to the special diseases of cats. 
Dr. Emmett T. Davis has the honor of occupying the first chair in any veter- 
inary college in the United States on diseases of swine. The study of equine 
diseases has only recently been reduced to a scientific standard and gradually 
scientists are classifvving and descriljing the treatment for diseases of domes- 
tic animals of all kinds. There is no greater preventive of disease which 
has a wider use today than the serum which is being manufactured by Dr. 
Davis & Son for the, prevention of hog cholera. This remedy has proven of 
inestimable value to the farmers of the United States. 



556 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Dr. I'jiiniett T. Davis was born in 1868 in Belleville, Indiana. His par- 
ents were David \V. and Amanda (Newby) Davis. The father of David 
Davis was born in North Carolina and came to Indiana territory before 
181 6. and as soon as the United States government acquired what is known 
IIS the New Purchase in central Indiana he entered one thousand acres of 
land in what is now known as Hendricks cbunty. David W. Davis and wife 
were the parents of four children: Alva Eugene, Arthur M., Emmett T. 
and Evon B. David Davis, who was born in Hendricks county, and here 
followed fanning, is now living near the gulf coast in Alabama. 

Doctor Davis received his elementary education in the common schools 
of his county and early in life became interested in the diseases of animals, 
particularly the diseases of horses and hogs, and has made it his life work, 
specializing upon the diseases of swine. For many years he w^as the leading 
practitioner in his line in central Indiana and when the Indiana Veterinary 
College was established, at Indianapolis, the chairs of swine diseases and 
diseases of cattle and their treatment was created for his occupancy. A 
serum, which he has produced after many years of experimenting, for the 
prevention of hog cholera, has made his name known throughout the United 
States by men who are interested in the raising of swine. He has asso- 
ciated with him in his practice his sons. Dr. LaRue and Roger. However, 
he devotes a great deal of time as an instructor in the veterinary college at 
Indianapolis and to the manufacture of the hog cholera serum. He has a 
we]l-e(|uipped hospital where the best of care is given to hogs, cattle, horses 
and other animals. 

Doctor Davis was married August 18, 1889, to Clarice Deacon, the 
daughter of John and Catherine (Larue) Deacon. His wife was born Janu- 
ary 3, 1869, in Shelby county, Indiana. She came to this county with her 
parents when she was a small child. Mr. and Mrs. Davis have two children. 
Larue, who is following in the footsteps of his father and is already recog- 
nized as an expert in the diseases of animals, was born January 13, 1890, 
and was married on October 28, 1911, to Llortense Reeder, w^ho died ten 
months later. Roger, the second son of Doctor and Mrs. Davis, is studying 
in the Indiana Veterinary College, and will join the firm of Emmett T. 
Davis & Son upon his graduation. 

Politically, Doctor Davis is a Progressive ; fraternally, is a Mason, Odd 
Fellow and Red Man, while his religious affiliation is with the Methodist 
Episcopal church. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 557 

JAMES M. LAWLER. 

It is the progressive, wide-awake man of affairs that makes the real 
history of a community and his influence as a potential factor of the body 
politic is difficult to estimate. The examples such men furnish of patient 
purpose and steadfast integrity strongly illustrate what is in the power of 
each to accomplish, and there is always a full measure of satisfaction in 
adverting, even in a casual way, to their achievements in advancing the 
interests of their fellow men and in giving strength and solidity to the institu- 
tions which make so much for the prosperity of a community. Such a man 
is the worthy subject of this sketch, and as such it is proper that a short out- 
line of his career be accorded a place among the representative citizens of his 
community. 

James M. Lawler, one of the leading farmers of Brown township, is a 
native of this county, having first seen the light of day on July 2^, 185 1, being 
the son of Nicholas and Anna ( Buchannon ) Lawler, the latter being a native 
of the Blue Grass state and the daughter of Levi Buchannon. Mr. Lawler 
has the distinction of having lived on the same farm all his life with the ex- 
ception of four years, two of which were passed in another portion of the 
same township. 

On December 28, 1876. James ^L Lawler was united in marriage with 
Mary E. Wilson, daughter of Jones and Telitha (Lumpkins) Wilson, of 
Boone county. The Lumpkin family originally came from Putnam county, 
this state, and after taking up their residence in Boone county became ac- 
quainted with the family of Wilson, Jones Wilson having passed the greater 
portion of his life in that county. To Mr. and Mrs. Lawler have been born 
three children, the eldest of the family being Charles O., whose wife was 
Ethel McDaniel, daughter of Jonathan and Mary (Gossett) McDaniel, 
citizens of Brown township, Hendricks county. Charles O. Lawler resides 
in Indianapolis and is the father of two children, Esther and Mildred. Stella 
M., Mr. Lawler's oldest daughter, became the wife of Homer Smith, of 
Boone county, son of Anderson and Mary (Layton) Smith. Their home is 
in Brown township, just west of that of the subject, and they also have two 
children, Irene and Hazel Ruth. The third child of the subject is Dora A., 
who remains at home with her parents. 

]\Ir. Lawler has devoted the energies of his life to the conduct of his 
business as an agriculturist and to the keeping and protecting of his home, 
being a man of decided domestic traits. His farm is generally conceded to be 



558 HENJ)RICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

one of the very best farms in the township and to this praise he is certainly 
entitled, being one of the most energetic men of his community. Quiet and 
unassuming in his relations with his fellow men, he nevertheless, by reason 
of his sterling worth and excellent qualities of head and heart, has won an 
enviable place in the respect of his fellow citizens and is, therefore, eminently 
entitled to representation in a work of the scope intended in the present one. 



JOHN Q. A. MATTERN. 



Among the men of Hendricks county who have served their county with 
distinction as private citizens and public ofificials is John O. A. Mattern, a 
prominent farmer and stock raiser of Guilford township. There are certain 
characteristics which are found in men who are destined to act as leaders in 
their communities, and among these are perseverance, honesty and sincerity 
of purpose. These characteristics are strikingly exemplified in the man 
whose history is herein delineated and consequently he is justly regarded as 
one of the representative citizens of his county. 

John A. jMattern, the son of John W. and Anna (Woodrow) Mattern, 
was born in Marion county, Indiana, on February 11, 1846. His parents 
were natives of Pennsylvania and reared a family of four children. 

John O. A. Mattern received a common school education and at an early 
age began to work on his father's farm. When a young man he began 
farming for himself as soon as married and by good management and close 
application to his agricultural interests he has ac({uired a farm which is one 
of the best in his township, it comprising three hundred and sixty acres in one 
body. He has always l)een very actively engaged in the stock-raising depart- 
ment of farm work and for fourteen years was a stock commissioner at the 
stock yarcN in Indiana])olis. However, he has not allowed his material wel- 
fare to Ijlind him to those civic duties which every citizen should perform. 
He has served as treasurer and county commissioner of Hendricks county, 
and in both capacities rendered faithful and efficient service to the citizenship 
of the county. 

Mr. Mattern was married on October 6, 1869, to Dana Mills, the daugh- 
ter of Jehu Mills, of this county. His w'ife was one of five children, two of 
whom (lied in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Mattern are the parents of four 
children: Edwin, born February 9, 1871 ; William, born January 3, 1880, 
who married Jessie Smith and has two children, and is now in the stock com- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 559 

mission business at Indianapolis; Laura A., born September i6, 1886, mar- 
ried Earl Hoffman, a farmer in Marion county, Indiana; Leota, born July 
28. 1888. 

On February 20, 1864, Mr. Mattern enlisted in Company D, One Hun- 
dred and Twenty-fourth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and served 
under General Sherman in the famous Atlanta campaign, his military record 
being characterized by courage of a high order. 

Politically, Mr. Mattern has been a life-long Republican; fraternally, 
he belongs to the Free and Accepted Masons, the Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows and the Grand Army of the Republic, while his religious membership 
is with the Friends society. 



WILLIAM P. CLARK. 



In examining the life records of self-made men, it will invariably be 
found that indefatigable industry has constituted the basis of their success. 
True, there are other elements which enter in and conserve the advancement 
of personal interests — perseverance, discrimination and mastering of expe- 
dients — but the foundation of all achievement is earnest, persistent labor. At 
the outset of his career Mr. Clark recognized this, and he did not seek any 
royal road to the goal of prosperity and independence, but began to work 
earnestly and diligently in order to advance himself, and the result is that he 
is now numbered among the progressive, successful and influential business 
men of Hendricks county. 

William P. Clark, the son of Alfred and Sarah (Aker) Clark, was born 
January 28, 185 1, in Butler county, Ohio. Alfred Clark was born in Butler 
county, Ohio, in 1820, his wife being born near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in 
July, 1834. She came to Butler county, Ohio, when she was seven years of 
age with her parents, and is still living in Irving, Indiana. 

William P. Clark came with his parents from Butler county, Ohio, to 
Marion county, Indiana, when he was two years old and lived there until 
1875, when he moved to the farm where he is now living. He was married 
April 14, 1880, to Elma Anderson, daughter of Edward and Amanda ( Wil- 
lits) Anderson. Mrs. Clark was born near Knightstown, Indiana, Februarv 
22, 1862. Her mother died when she was only nine months old and she was 
taken to her grandmother's at Noblesville, Indiana, where she lived until she 
was nine years old. She then went to the home of Isaac Harden, in Wash- 



s6o 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



ington township, Hendricks county, where ^he remained until her marria-e 
to Mr. Clark. "^ 

xAIr. and Mrs. Clark have four children: Leola May, who w^as born 
March 17, 1S81, and died after reaching womanhood, having married Harry 
Gray; Walter Raymond, who was born November 19. 1883, and died March 
20, 1887; Sarah Louisa, born May 2, 1886, died March 9, 1887; and Alford 
A.,, the only child living, was bom November 14, 1888. He married Merley 
Sarkey, daughter of Charles and Viola Sarkey, of Clermont, Indiana and is 
living with her father on the old home farm. 

The subject carries on a general farming business, also raising Poland- 
China hogs and Shorthorn cattle, and has one hundred and sixty acres on 
the home place, besides forty acres in Wayne township, Marion countv In- 
diana. He votes the Democratic ticket. Mrs. Clark is a member of Shiloh 
Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Clark built his fine home in 1908 and put 
up every building on the farm. He made all of the improvements just as they 
stand for when he got the farm it was badly run down. He has laid over 
two thousand rods of drain tile. 



THEODORE T. MARTIN. 

Theodore T. Martin, the superintendent of Hendricks county schools 
was born on a tarm in Orange county, Indiana, August 25, 1882 His 
parents were Charles and Mary Ann (Ferguson) Martin, his father being 
a native of Germany and his mother of Indiana, her people coming from Eng- 
land to North Carolina and then to Indiana. Charles Martin was a ma- 
chinist and later a farmer. 

Superintendent Martin graduated from the public schools of his home 
county and later entered Central Normal College, at Danville, in 1901 where 
he pursued high school work. He taught three years in the district schools 
of Orange county, one year in the city schools of Summitville, Madison 
county, and tour years in Hendricks county. 

Mr. Martin graduated from the teachers' course (Central Normal Col- 
lege) in 1905; from the scientific course at the same institution in 1906 and 
trom the Indiana State Normal School, at Terre Haute, Indiana, in 1909- 
he has since been a student in Indiana University. 

In 1907 Mr. Martin was chosen principal of the Avon high school 
Hendricks county, and continued there for two years. In the fall of 1909 




THEODORE T. MARTIN 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 561 

he became superintendent of the North Salem schools, Hendricks county, and 
remained there for the succeeding two years. In June of 191 1 he was elected 
county superintendent of Hendricks county public schools by the county 
board of education, and was the first Democrat to hold the office in this 
county. 

Mr. Martin was married to Eva Marie Osborne, of Clinton county, in 
December of 1906. They became acquainted while attending Central Nor- 
mal College. 

In January of 19 12, in co-operation with the county board of education, 
Mr. Martin caused a large wall map of the county to be made and placed in 
every schoolroom of the county so that a study of local industries, location 
of town, township and county places could be determined, and a familiarity 
with home conditions be included in the public schools. In January of 19 14 
the same board, in co-operation with' members of the farmers' organization, 
procured the services of a county agricultural agent for the leadership in 
developing scientific farming through the county and supervising the teach- 
ing of agriculture in the public schools. 

Mr. Martin is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church of Danville, 
and is a member of the Masonic lodge of North Salem. While performing 
his duties as county superintendent he has followed the worthy example of 
his predecessors and has conducted the educational affairs free from polit- 
ical influence and has tried to place merit as his guide. 



HON. JAMES MILTON BARLOW. 

It is a pleasure to investigate the career of a successful, self-made man. 
Great honor attaches to that individual who, beginning the great struggle of 
life alone and unaided, gradually overcomes environment, removing one by 
one the obstacles from the pathway of success, and by the master strokes 
of his own force and vitality succeeds in forging his way to the front and 
winning for himself a position of esteem and influence among his fellow men. 
Such is the record, briefly stated, of James M. Barlow, for several decades 
recognized as one of the most substantial and representative citizens of 
Hendricks county, to a brief synopsis of whose life and character the reader's 
attention is herewith directed. His protracted residence in this county 
has made his name w^idelv and familiarly known. His life and the history 
(36) 



562 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

of this locality for a period of nearly a half century has been pretty nearly one 
and the same thing, and he has lived to see and take a prominent part in the 
later growth of the community. He is a progressive man in the broadest 
sense of the term. Realizing the wants of the people, he has tried to supply 
the demands of his constituents generously and unsparingly. His has been a 
life of honor and trust, and no higher eulogy can be passed upon him than 
to state the simple truth that his name ha? never been coupled with anything 
disreputable, nor has there been the shadow of a stain upon his reputation 
for integrity and unwavering honesty. He has been a consistent man in all 
that he has undertaken, and his career in the various relations of life has 
been utterly without pretense. Because of his earnest life, high attainments, 
well rounded character and large influence, he is largely entitled to representa- 
tion in a work of this character. 

James Milton Barlow^ was born on September 13, 1845, i^^ Washing- 
ton township, Hendricks county, Indiana, and is the son of Harvey R. and 
Sarah E. (Smith) Barlow, the former born April i, 1818, in Scott county, 
Kentucky, and the latter born in Henry county, Kentucky, December 8, 1822. 
To these parents were born eight children, four sons and four daughters, of 
whom four still survive, namely : The first born died in infancy; Hannah Jane 
C. died in early youth ; James M., the subject of this sketch, was next in order 
of birth ; Ruth Ann lives in Marion county ; a daughter, who died in infancy ; 
Mrs. Myra Alice Medsker died at the age of forty years, leaving a husband 
and eight children; Harrison S., of Brownsburg, Indiana; Harvey Morton, 
of Brownsburg. The subject's paternal grandfather, Enoch BarIow% was the 
son of a Revolutonary soldier and he himself was one of the early settlers 
in Scott county, Kentucky, his birth having occurred in Virginia. Event- 
ually he moved to Indiana and in September, 1828, settled near Brownsburg, 
where he spent the remainder of his days, his death occurring in November, 
1837. He was survived a number of years by his widow, who died on June 
16, 1856. They were the parents of eleven children, seven sons and four 
daughters. Harvey R. Barlow was a man of considerable prominence in his 
community and was captain of a company of state volunteers. Harvey R. 
Barlow came to Indiana at the age of ten years at the time of his father's 
death and took upon himself the management of the home farm. He was of 
necessity deprived of educational advantages, two months comprising the 
entire period of his attendance at school. However, he was of a studious 
disposition and by the most persistent efforts acquired a splendid education, 
so that for many years he was enabled to teach school to the entire satis- 
faction of parents and pupils. His death occurred on August 5, 1872. His 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 563 

wife, whose maiden name was Sarah J. Smith, and who was a native of 
Kentucky, died at the age of seventy-three years. She came to this state in 
1837, and was a woman of splendid c[uahties of character, an ardent Presby- 
terian and rearing her children in that faith. In the early life of Hend- 
ricks county, Harvey Barlow was prominent and progressive in his methods, 
having built the first saw- and grist-mill in the county. He was a man of 
strong character and forceful personality, and in the community where he 
lived he was held in high esteem. 

James M. Barlow receiA-ed his elementary education in the public schools 
and then became a student in \^^abash College. On April 30, 1864, when 
but eighteen years of age, he enlisted in Company H, One Hundred and 
Thirty-second Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, with which he rendered 
valiant service until receiving an honorable discharge in September, 1864. 
He took part in a number of hotly contested engagements and arduous 
campaigns, and received a certificate of thanks from President Lincoln and 
Secretary of War Edwin H. Stanton, for valuable services rendered by him 
during the Atlanta campaign. ]\.Ir. Barlow has been a very active man and at 
the close of the war he went on the road as a traveling salesman for Powers 
& Weeks, lithographers of Cincinnati, Ohio, with whom he remained for 
two years. He then engaged in teaching school and was thus employed in 
twenty-two different schools, gaining an enviable reputation as a professional 
teacher and good administrative officer. For awhile he also gave some atten- 
tion to auctioneering, in which he was successful, and also owned and oper- 
ated a butcher shop in Brownsburg, and also a drug store. Then he was 
employed as bookkeeper for a firm in Pittsboro, in which position he gained 
a good, practical experience. In young manhood, by rigid economy and wise 
management, he succeeded in acquiring a small farm, which he operated wnth 
such good success that he was enabled to add to it from time to time, until 
at length he became the owner of seven hundred acres of fine farming land, 
of which he has given four hundred acres to his children, owning now three 
hundred acres of land. Aside from his farming interests, Mr. Barlow is 
identified with the Van Camp Packing Company, of Indianapolis. Strong 
and forceful in his relations with his fellow men, he has gained the good will 
and commendation of all with whom he has been l>rought in contact, ever 
retaining his reputation among men for integrity and high character and 
never losing that dignity which is the birthright of a gentleman. The splen- 
did success which came to Mr. Barlow has been directly traceable to the 
salient points in his character, for he started in life at the bottom of the 
ladder, which he mounted unaided. He is a splendid example of the virile, 






r64 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

progressive, self-made man, who believes in doing well whatever is worth 
doing at all. 

Politically a Republican, Mr. Barlow has for many years been active in 
public affairs, and has been an important and influential factor in many move- 
ments for the welfare of his state. In 1897 ^"f^ 1899 he was representative 
from Hendricks county in the Legislature, and in 1901-2-3 was a member of 
the Senate, representing the district of Boone and Hendricks counties. In 
these bodies his ability was recognized and he was placed on several of the 
nu)st important committees. He was chairman of the agricultural committee, 
chairman of the committee on reformatory institutions, and on a num])er of 
other important committees in both bodies. He served his community as 
justice of the peace for four years, and a noteworthy feature of his adminis- 
tration of the office was that he was influential in having many cases settled 
out of court, thus saving useless litigation and expense. His decisions as 
justice of the peace were marked by a high sense of fairness and justice, 
never having a decision reversed in the higher courts. Fraternally, Mr. 
Barlow has been a member of Lodge No. 188, Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows, for forty-eight years. He is also a member of the Improved Order 
of Red Men, Lodge No. 167, and at present a member of Post No. 186, 
Grand Army of the Republic. He was a charter member of John A. Hollett 
Post No. 242, Grand Army of the Repul)lic. In the Knights of Pythias, Mr. 
Barlow has l)een quite prominent, having taken an active part in the organiza- 
tion of the Uniform Rank, being elected major of the First Battalion of the 
First Regiment, this being the first regiment ever organized in this body, and 
the first and oldest regiment in the world. Mr. Barlow served as chief of 
staff of Commander in Chief Thomas J. Stewart, of Pennsylvania, when the 
Grand Army of the Republic met at San Francisco, and has for many years 
been prominent in the various councils of this veteran organization. For 
twenty years Mr. Barlow served as president of the Old Settlers' Picnic, one 
of the popular and prominent organizations of Hendricks county, an annual 
feature of which was an address given by the governor of the state. Relig- 
iously, Mr. Barlow has for many years been a faithful and earnest member 
of the Presbyterian church, of which he is an elder, and in 1903 was one of 
the delegates from Indiana to the general assembly of the church whicli met 
at Philadelphia. Mr. Barlow is a public spirited man in all that the term im- 
plies and is actively interested in enterprises tending to promote the general 
welfare, withholding his sup])ort from no movement for the good of the 
locality honored by his residence. His personal relations with his fellow 
men have ever been mutually pleasant and agreeable, and he is highly regarded 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 565 

by all, being easily approached, obliging and straightforward in all the rela- 
tions of life. 

On May 17, 1871, Mr. Barlow was married to Sarah E. Hornaday, a 
daughter of Isaiah Hornaday. a farmer of Washington township, this county, 
and was one of eight children, five of whom are now living. To this union 
have been born eight children: William E., of Minneapolis, a teacher in the 
public schools, having charge of the manual training department in the South 
high school. He is married and the father of four children ; Henry Dicker- 
son, a farmer on the old homestead in Washington township, has four chil- 
dren living; Walter Harvey, a farmer in Guilford township, has four chil- 
dren; Myrtle, of Plainheld, who married Fred Brudford, a merchant of that 
city; Virgil M., who lives in Missouri, married Edith Anderson; Albert 
Paul, of Plainfield, a merchant, married Marie Hollingsworth ; Harrison 
Porter, who died at the age of three years, and Mary S.. the youngest in order 
of birth, who is attending college at Terre Haute, Indiana. 



HUGH J. WOODY. 



Fortunate is he who has back of him an ancestry honorable and dis- 
tinguished, and happy is he that his lines of life are cast in harmony there- 
with. Hugh J. Woody, a well known and progressive citizen of Pittsboro, 
Hendricks county, Indiana, has succeeded well at whatever he has attempted 
to do and, although he is a plain, conservative gentleman, no doubt if he had 
sought to be a leader of men and achieve public distinction, he would have 
found that nature had provided well for him in the way of the proper equip- 
ment and that he only needed to call into proper use the dormant faculties. 

Hugh J. Woody, the manager of the grain elevator at Pittsboro, was 
born February 21, 1865, one mile south of Plainheld, in Guilford township, 
this county. His parents were Miller and Margaret (Lacey) Woody. Miller 
Woody was born in North Carolina on May 15, 1836, and died in Nowata, 
Oklahoma, January 13, 1909, at the age of seventy-two. He moved to Hen- 
dricks county at the age of fifteen years with his parents and on September 8, 
1858, was married to Margaret Lacey, of Plainfield. He lived in this county 
for a number of years near Pittsboro and then moved to Oklahoma, in what 
was then called the Cherokee strip, in 1884. Mr. and Mrs. Miller Woody 
were the parents of seven children : Mrs. A. M. Hawkins, of Indianapolis ; 



06 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

H. J., of Pittsboro; Mrs. J. D. Reynolds, of Coffeyville, Kansas; C. F. ; Mrs. 
I'Yank ATcCartney ; Mrs. A. H. Gillespey, and Walter, of Nowata. Oklahoma. 
Miller \Voodv died at the home of his son-in-law, A. H. Gillespey, who was 
an alderman in the city of Nowata, Oklahoma. Margaret Lacey, the wife of 
Miller Woody, was a native of this county and died in 1877. 

Hugh J. Woody spent his boyhood days in this county and early in his 
twenties became associated in the grain elevator business at Pittsbf)ro and 
has been identified with that industry for the past twenty-seven years, fifteen 
years oi which he has been the general manager of the company at Pittsl)oi-o. 

Mr. Woody was married December 4, 1890, to Cora E. Hedge, the 
daughter of Chester and Sarah (Gott) Hedge. Chester Hedge was born 
March 4, 1840, in Pulaski county, Virginia. After his death his widow mar- 
ried James Mallory Leak, whose history is given elsewhere in this xolume. 
Mr. and Mrs. Hedge were the parents of five children: Cora li., the wife of 
Mr. Woody; Myrtle R. ; Mary E., deceased; Ernest E. and Charles O. Mr. 
Hedge was a stanch Republican and a member of the Christian church, being 
a deacon in that denomination. He had an enviable war record, having en- 
listed in March, 1862, in Company F, Fortieth Regiment of Indiana Volun- 
teer Infantry, took part in the campaigns in Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama 
and Georgia, and among many other battles participated in the engagements 
of Resaca, Jonesboro, Mill Springs, New Hope Church, Peach Tree Creek, 
Dallas, PvOcky Faced Ridge, Atlanta, Lost Mountain and Franklin. At the 
latter battle he was captured, but escaped by plunging into the river and diving, 
and, although he was shot at several times, he made his escape safely. He 
was mustered out in 1865 at Indianapolis and died January 8. 19 12, at Riner, 
Virginia. He was a member of George A. Kendall Post No. 499, Grand 
Army of the Republic, at Lizton. 

Mr. and Mrs. Woody have three children who are still at home. Merle, 
Clara and Miller. Mr. Woody is a member of the Knights of Pythias and 
the Improved Order of Red Men at Lizton and the Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows at Pittsboro. While he casts his vote for the Republican party, yet 
he has never been an active worker in the ranks, preferring to devote all of his 
attention to his business. Religiously, he is by birthright a member of the 
Friends church, while his wife holds her membership in the Christian church. 
He is a man of optimistic nature, kind, considerate and one who is devoted to 
his home circle. He is a man to admire and esteem, for his industry and ex- 
emplary character has made him one of the highest respected citizens of his 
community. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 567 

CUNNING HERBERT STEWARD. 

Among the thriving farmers and stock raisers of Eel River township 
is Cunning Herbert Steward, who, although a resident of this county only 
three years, has nevertheless demonstrated his ability as a farmer of the first 
rank. He has tried to measure up to the standard of correct citizenship and 
this township is proud to number him among its progressive and repre- 
sentative residents. 

Cunning Herbert Steward, the son of Maurice and Lou (Yeager) 
Steward, was born in 1883 in Morgan county, Indiana. Maurice Steward 
was born at Brooklyn, Morgan county, and his wife was a native of the same 
county. jMaurice Steward is the son of William and Serelda (Rinker) 
Steward, and his wife was the daughter of Whalen Yeager and wife. The 
wife of Maurice Steward died in 1893, leaving five living children, and one 
who died in infancy. Shortly after Mrs. Steward's death her husband and 
the children moved to Putnam county, this state, and settled on a farm near 
Maysville. Maurice Steward is now living on a farm near Delma, in Put- 
nam county. 

Cunning H. Steward received a good common school education in the 
Putnam county schools and worked out by the month for twelve years, until 
his marriage. In 19 10 he became interested in the buying and selling of 
horses, but after his marriage he turned his attention to farming and the 
feeding of cattle for the markets. In September, 191 1, he bought forty 
acres where he now lives in the southeastern part of Eel River township and 
adjoining eighty acres which belongs to his wife. Their farm of one hun- 
dred and twenty acres is very fertile and under the present excellent system 
of tillage producer abundant crops of wheat, oats, corn, hay, vegetables, fruits, 
etc. Mr. Steward makes a specialty of no particular crop, but gives his atten- 
tion to general farming in which his success has been more than ordinarily 
gratifying. For the past three years he has been interested quite extensively 
in the raising of cattle, which he finds more remunerative than agriculture 
alone, and by a judicious combination of the two he has achieved his greatest 
success. 

Mr. Steward was married May 7, 191 1, to Murl Case, a native of this 
township and the daughter of Lewis and Josie (Call) Case. Lewis Case, the 
son of Rev. John and Julia Case, was born near Maysville, Kentucky. John 
Case was a Baptist minister who came from Kentucky to Putnam county 
early in the history of that part of the state and entered government land 



568 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

near New INIaysville. He and his good wife reared a family of thirteen 
children, all of whom grew to maturity. He became one of the most sub- 
stantial farmers of the county and presented several of his children with a 
farm upon their marriage. All of his children are now deceased. Lewis 
Case was a lifelong farmer and stock dealer and owned two hundred and 
sixty acres of land in the southeastern part of Eel River township, where he 
lived until his death, in April, 1904. Josie Call, the wife of Lewis Case, was 
a native of Kentucky, the daughter of John and Julia Call, and came to this 
county with her parents when she was about three years of age and lived 
here until her death in 1906. 

Mr. Steward is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, the Inde- 
pendent Order of Odd Fellows, the Daughters of Rebekah and Order of 
Eastern Star. His wife is also a devout member of the Christian church. 
Personally, Mr. Steward is a very popular man. and with a personality which 
endears him to his many friends. He is honest, straightforward and upright 
in all the relations of life and he and his wife are favorites with a wide circle 
of friends. 



OSCAR HADLEY. 



Under a popular form of government, like ours, where the democratic 
idea of equality is as fully developed as the present imperfect condition of 
mankind will permit, we expect as its legitimate result the triumph ot in- 
dividual worth and energy over all the competition that wealth and class 
may arrav against them. Here the avenues of wealth and distinction are 
fully opened to all, which fact enhances rather than detracts from the 
merits of those whose energy and integrity have triumphed over all obstacles 
intervening between an humble position and the attainment of those laudable 
ends. Obscurity and labor, at no time dishonorable, never assume more 
attractive features than when the former appears as the nurse of those 
virtues which the latter, by years of honest and persevering effort, trans- 
plant to a higher and richer soil; hence the biographer of those men of ex- 
ceptional worth whose active enterprise has won for them the distinction, 
pre-eminence and commanding influence in the society in which they move 
must 1)6 replete with facts which encourage and instruct. 

Oscar Hadley, president of the Standard Live Stock Insurance Com- 
pany, of Indianapolis, has for many years held marked prestige in business 
and civic circles, occupied important official trusts, and by the exercise of 




<^^/=^^,^4t, 




HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 569 

those talents and qualities which were cultivated from his youth, reached an 
honorable position in the public mind and earned the respect and high re- 
gard of his fellow citizens. 

Mr. Hadley was born on a f;irm in Guilford township, near Plainfield, 
Hendricks county, Indiana, May 3, 1858. and in order of nativity is the 
fifteenth of the sixteen children born to Elias and Lucinda (Carter) Had- 
ley, the former of whom was born in the state of North Carolina and the 
latter in Butler county, Ohio. Elias Hadley was a boy when his father, 
Jeremiah Hadle}-. removed with his family from North Carolina to Butler 
county. Ohio, w^here he was reared to maturity and received the limited 
educational advantages offered by the primitive schools of the pioneer days. 
Prior to the attaining of his legal majority, Elias Hadley came to Indiana 
and selected a favorable location in Hendricks county, after W'hich he re- 
turned to Ohio and there married Lucinda Carter, who was then in her 
se\enteenth year. Immediately after their marriage the young couple came 
to Hendricks county, Indiana, and established their little home in a pioneer 
log house erected on the land in Guilford township which he had secured 
from the go\'ernment. and which represented at that time a veritable forest 
wilderness. His father also removed to the locality at the same time and both 
secured tracts of government land, on a portion of which the town of 
Plainfield now stands. Here the young man and the old grappled vigorously 
with the giants of the forest and in due time reclaimed their farms to civili- 
zation. Jeremiah Hadley and his good wife passed the residue of their 
lives in Hendricks county, and on their old homestead Elias and Lucinda 
(Carter) Hadley continued to reside until they, too, were summoned to the 
life eternal, honored pioneers of the county in which they took up their abode 
about the year 1822. Elias Hadley was seventy-five years of age at the time 
of his demise, and his devoted wife passed away at the venerable age of 
eighty-four years, a true mother in Israel, whose children may well "rise up 
and call her blessed." and whose memory they hold in lasting reverence. 
Both she and her husband were zealous members of the Christian church, 
and in politics he was originally a Whig, and later a Republican, having 
united with the ''grand old party" at the time of its organization. Of the 
sixteen children nine are now living. The Hadley family has been one of 
the best known and most highly honored in Hendricks county for many years, 
and its members have contributed in liberal measure to the civic and indus- 
trial development of that favored section of the state. Twelve of the six- 
teen children in the Hadle}- family lived to maturity and all were members 
of the same church. 



570 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Oscar 1 ladle V was reared as a farmer boy on the old homestead farm 
which was the place of his nativity. His boyhood days gained to him through 
personal experience an appreciation of the dignity and value of honest toil. 
He early learned the lessons of industry, self-reliance and sturdy integrity 
that have proved so potent in the guiding and guarding of his career as a 
man among men. After completing the prescribed course of the public 
schools, Mr. Hadley continued his studies for one year at Butler College, at 
Irvington, and much of his business career has been one of intimate and 
successful identification with general farming and stock growing, in which 
latter department of industry he has gained a specially wide reputation as a 
successful breeder of high-grade cattle. For many years he has been num- 
bered among the representative farmers and stock raisers of Hendricks 
county, where he owais a fine landed estate of two hundred and fifty acres, 
equipped with the best of improvements in all lines. He holds prestige as one 
of the leading exponents of agriculture and stock enterprises in the entire 
state. For several years he has been a member of the Indiana state board of 
agriculture, of which he served as president in 1909, giving to the work of 
the organization the benefits of his wade and practical experience and fine ad- 
ministrative ability. In 1902 Mr. Hadley became one of the organizers and 
incorporators of the Polled Durham Breeders' Association of the United 
States, the largest and most substantial organization of its kind in the world, 
and of which he was elected president in 1908. He has made a specialty of 
the breeding of the Polled Durham cattle, and on his farm are to be found 
the finest of specimens of this breed. He is a member of both the state and 
National Shorthorn Breeders' Association. 

A man of fine intellectual attainments and forceful personality, Mr. Had- 
ley has naturally taken a laudable interest in public affairs in Indiana and 
done all in his power to conserve its progress and prosperity. A stahvart 
in the camp of the Republican party from the time of attaining his legal ma- 
jurit}', he has rendered most efficient service in the promotion of its cause and 
has been a prominent factor in connection with the party work in his native 
state. His eligibility for positions of public trust was early recognized in his 
home community, wdiere, it may be said, he set at naught all incidental appli- 
cation of the scriptural adage that ''a prophet is not without honor save in 
his owm country." At the age of twenty-one he became a precinct committee- 
man of his party in his home precinct, and he was chairman of the precinct 
committee for his township for a continuous period of fifteen years. The 
first elective office to which he was called was that of trustee of his native 
township, of which position he continued incumbent for five and one-half 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 5/1 

years, at the close of which, in 1900, he was nominated and elected treasurer 
of Hendricks county. Local political precedent prescribes that in this county 
the county treasurer shall not become a candidate for a second term, and 
thus ]\Ir. Hadley served only the one term, within which he showed marked 
ability in handling the fiscal affairs of the county. 

In 1906 Mr. Hadley 's name was placed before his party as a candidate 
for state treasurer, and after a spirited preliminary campaign he was duly 
nominated for this office in the Republican state convention of that year. In 
November of the same year he rolled up a gratifying majority at the polls, 
having led the ticket, and on the loth of February, 1907, he assumed the 
duties of the office. Within his term of two years he amply justified the wis- 
dom of the people's choice, bringing to bear marked capacity for handling 
the details of the work and doing much to improve the system of handling 
the fiscal affairs of the state. Popular appreciation of his fidelity, ability and 
integrity of purpose was indicated both in his nomination as his own suc- 
cessor by his party in the state convention of 1908, and also by the unequivo- 
cal support accorded him in the ensuing election, through which he was re- 
turned to office for a second term of two years, which expired on the loth 
of February, 191 1. His record as state treasurer was signally clean, straight- 
forward and successful, redounding alike to his credit and to the conservation 
of the best interests of the commonwealth. His administration is generally 
conceded as one of the best the office ever had. 

Upon leaving official life Mr. Hadley became identified with the Stand- 
ard Live Stock Insurance Company of Indianapolis, of which he was one of 
the organizers and incorporators, and he has served as president of this cor- 
poration continuously since its organization to the present time. The Stand- 
ard Live Stock Insurance Company is the largest organization of its kind in 
the world, having a capitalization of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, 
and having business in many states of the Union. 

Mr. Hadley is vice-president of the First National Bank of Plainfield, 
being also a director and one of the organizers of this well-known Hendricks 
county bank. 

Fraternally, Mr. Hadley is a member of the Masonic order, in which 
he has taken the capitular degrees, being affiliated with Plainfield Lodge No. 
653, Free and Accepted Masons, in Plainfield, and with Danville Chapter 
No. 46, Royal Arch Masons, of Danville. He also holds membership in the 
Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias. 

Mr. Hadley was married March 10, 1880, to Emma Talbott, daughter 
of Lorenzo Talbott, a well-known stock dealer and farmer. Three children 



57- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 



were bom of this union: Chester, born February 26, 1882. is engaged in the 
nursery business at Danville, Indiana; Vivian, born December 18, 1885, is 
the wife of Dr. T. A. Bryan, of Mattoon. Illinois; Nancy, born October 20, 
1889. lives in Indianapolis. 

Mr. and Mrs. Hadley are consistent memljers of the Christian church. 
The Hadley home is at No. 2745 College avenue, Indianapolis. 



DANIEL M. JONES. 



Descended from a family who were in Indiana when it was admitted to 
the Union in 1816 is Daniel M. Jones, whose history is briefly reviewed in 
the following pages. He is distinguished as a citizen whose influence has 
extended far beyond the community honored by his residence and he has for 
years stood out as a conspicuous figure among the successful farmers of his 
township and county. All of his undertakings have been actuated by noble 
motives and high resolves and characterized by that breadth of wisdom which 
distinguishes strong men. His success and achievements along agricultural 
lines represent the result of fit utilization of innate talent, directed along 
those lines where mature judgment and rare discrimination lead the way. 

Daniel M. Jones, the son of Samuel and Nancy (Ramsey) Jones, was 
born August 12, 1849, iii Morgan county, Indiana. His father was born 
May 24, 1803, in Tennessee, and his mother on March 25, 1812. Samuel 
Jones came to Indiana with his parents in 18 15 and settled in that part of the 
state which w'as still under the control of the Indians. It was bought from 
the Indians by the United States government in the fall of 1818 and from it 
the territory in which the Joneses located was organized into Morgan county. 
Samuel Jones died in 1875 and his wife in 1898. They \\ere the parents of 
eight children, only two of w^hom are now living, Daniel M., and Mrs. Eliza- 
beth A. Snipes, of Salt Lake City, Utah. 

Mr. Jones w^as educated in the common schools of Hendricks county 
and later at Lafayette Farmers Institute. Early in life he decided that he 
wished to follow the occupation of his father. In accordance wnth the cus- 
toms of those days, he was married very young and when nineteen vears of 
age led to the nuptial altar Nancy Blair, of Guilford towmship, of this county, 
their wedding day falling on September 30, 1868. Immediately after their 
marriage they went to housekeeping on the farm w^here they have lived their 
married life of the past forty-six years one mile east of Plainfield. Mr. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 573 

Jones has always been a successful farmer and. while he has been very care- 
ful, he has not let his conservatism hinder him in taking advantage of all the 
latest improvements in farming. He has wisely divided his attention be- 
tween the raising of grain and stock, with the result that he has acquired 
in the course of the last half century a very comfortable competence. He 
now has a fine farm of three hundred and seventy acres, which he has l:)rought 
to a high state of cultivation and productivity. He has taken a great deal of 
interest in farmers" institutes and stock farm courses as provided by our ex- 
cellent state school. 

Mr. Jones has been a life-long Republican, but has never indulged in the 
fervor of political campaigns. Religiously, he is a member of the Friends 
church and has always been an active worker in this denomination. He has 
always had the best interests of this locality at heart and has sought to ad- 
vance them in whate\'er way possible. His career has been characterized by 
untiring energy, uncompromising fidelity and an earnest desire to serve his 
fellow men. He has been very much interested in education and particularly 
in the career of Earlham College, Richmond, Indiana, to which he has sub- 
scribed liberallv. He has been a member of the Free and Accepted Masons 
and Independent Order of Odd Fellows at Plainfield for the past twenty 
years, being active in lodge work. Such has been his life during his long 
career that he has at the same time won and retains the high esteem of all 
with whom he has come in contact by the honorable course which he has at 
all times pursued. 



NATHANIEL CLARK GOSSETT. 

Agriculture has been an honored vocation from the earliest ages and, as 
a usual thing, men of honorable and humane impulses, as well as those of 
energy and thrift, have been patrons of husbandry. The free out-door life of 
the farm has a decided tendency to foster and develop that independence of 
mind and self-reliance w^hich characterizes true manhood and no truer bless- 
ing can befall a boy than to be reared in close touch with nature in the health- 
ful, life-inspiring labor of the fields. It has always been the fruitful soil 
from which have sprung the moral bone and sinew of the country, and the 
majority of our nation's great warriors, renowned statesmen and distin- 
guished men of letters were born on the farm and were indebted largely to 
its early influence for the distinction which they have attained. 

Nathaniel Clark Gossett, one of the many successful farmers of Brown 



574 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

township. Hendricks county, Indiana, is a native of this county, born on a 
farm of which his present holdings constituted a part, on January 28. 1856, 
being one of twelve children of Nathaniel Walton and Mary Greenfield (Fox) 
Gossett. the former of whom was a son of John and Dorcas (Clark) Gossett, 
John Gossett was a son of Thomas and Sarah ( Walton )Gossett. Dorcas 
Clark, paternal grandmother of the immediate subject of this sketch, was a 
daughter of Samuel E. and Rachael ( Bratton ) Clark, the former of whom 
was a veteran of the War of the Revolution. Mary Greenfield Fox, mother 
of the subject of this sketch, was a daughter of John and Hannah (Barker) 
Fox. and both she and the father of the subject were natives of the state of 
North Carolina, being brought to Indiana l)y their parents while they \vere 
still children. Nathaniel W. Gossett was twelve years of age at that time, 
while Mary Greenfield Fox was but eight years old. Both families settled in 
Hendricks county, about two and one-half miles north of Plainfield. Here 
the young people in question grew to maturity and there their marriage was 
later solemnized. 

Nathaniel W. Gossett spent his boyhood days on the paternal farmstead, 
where he early learned the secrets of successful agriculture under the intelli- 
gent direction of his father. He devoted himself assiduously to the cultiva- 
tion of the soil all his life and was eminently successful in his chosen vocation. 
At the age of nineteen he was married and at that time purchased a portion 
of his father's farm, remaining on that tract until in 1853. His original 
holdings were then disposed of to advantage and he purchased two hundred 
and ten acres of land in the northeast portion of Brown township. Hendricks 
county, where he passed the remainder of his life. His death occurred on 
October 28, 1903. and at that time he was living, together with his son, 
Nathaniel C, the immediate subject of this sketch, in a house he had built 
on his farm some distance from the old homestead, having disposed of all but 
eighty acres of his original farm. A short time before his death he sold that 
tract to the subject of this sketch, who has continued to reside there. There 
too, the mother of subject passed away on October 23, 1910. Mr Gossett 
has never married. He keeps his farm up to the highest type of modern 
agricultural methods and conducts his business in such a manner as to win 
for himself the reputation of being a thorough agriculturist. Mr. Gossett's 
oldest brother was one of the leading men of his community, serving as county 
superintendent of school for several years. He was also a veteran of the 
Civil War. Personally, Mr. Gossett is a man of strong personal qualities. 
easily makes friends and always retains them. United in his composition 
are so many elements of a provident, practical nature, which during a series 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 575 

of years have brought him into prominence and earned for him a first place 
among the enterprising men of his county, that it is but just recognition of 
his worthiness that he receive specific mention in this work. 



ALBERT WESLEY BEAMAN. 

Among the progressive farmers of Hendricks county Albert W. Beaman 
occupies a prominent place for the reason that he is a man of education and 
self confidence. Real self confidence is not a matter of many words, but it is 
the quiet chap with square jaw and the silent tongue who is the man to be 
afraid of. He is the man who wins. Out of self confidence grow enthusiasm 
and earnestness, and for the man who is in earnest nothing is impossible. 
Many of us make the mistake of not taking ourselves seriously. H we are 
inclined to look upon life as a joke it is pretty certain that the joke is on us. 
Mr. Beaman is a man who has believed in himself ; he has selected a goal and 
marched straightforward toward it. Although he has found many difficulties 
in his way, he has believed that they were only there in order to prove his 
strength, to test his self confidence. One by one he has cleared the difficulties 
out of his way and today he stands a self-reliant, aggressive man who takes a 
prominent and influential part in the community where he lives. 

Albert Wesley Beaman, the son of Adam and Rebecca A. (McDaniels) 
Beaman, was born February 22. 187-I. in Brown township, Hendricks county, 
Indiana. Adam Beaman was a native of Boone county, this state, who came 
to Hendricks county after he was married, settling in Brown township, on 
eighty acres of land. He died in March, 1909. Rebecca A. McDaniels, the 
mother of Mr. Beaman, was born in Hendricks county in April, 1844, her 
birth occurring about one mile west of Brownsburg. and she is still living at 
Pittsboro, Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. Adam Beaman were the parents of seven 
children. Charles S., Willard E., Otis B.. deceased. Albert Wesley, William 
Edgar, Ada, deceased, George Byron, deceased. 

Albert W. Beaman spent his earlier life on a farm in Brown township, 
where he was born in a log cabin. This log cabin, around which cluster so 
many memories of the Beaman family, was destroyed by fire in May, 1879, 
when Albert was five years of age. When he was born this farm was an 
unbroken forest and his boyhood days were alternated between his school 
books and the clearing. He was quick to learn and acquired knowledge read- 
ily and easily. Upon his finishing his common school course, he was suffi- 



q76 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ciently advanced to receive a teacher's license, and for two years taught 
school in Brown townshi]), in this county. However, he preferred the life of 
a farmer, and upon his marriage began to farm and has since continued to 
follow that vocation, but taught one term near home recently, in Middle 
township. 

In the fall of 1900 Mr. Beaman l)ought the farm where he has since 
resided, in the east edge of Middle township, near the Boone county line. 

Mr. Beaman was married October 20, 1895, to Ona Kennedy, and to 
this union have been born three children, Byron Page, Edith Evangeline and 
Ernest Clififord. Mr. Beaman is a member of the Improved Order of Red 
Men at Fayette. Indiana, and in politics has always adhered to the principles 
of the Democratic party. While he has been active in the councils of his 
party, yet he has never been an aspirant for any office, but willing to serve in 
the ranks as a private. Mr. Beaman is a keen, business farmer, frank and 
plain spoken and is able to converse intelligently upon any topic of current 
interest. He is one of the clean-cut type of modern farmers who are the 
backbone of our nation today and help to make us the greatest nation on the 
face of the earth. 



JOHN L. GUNN. 

Practical industry, wisely and vigorously applied, never fails of suc- 
cess. It carries a man onward and upward, brings out his individual char- 
acter and acts as a powerful stimulus to the efforts of others. The greatest 
results in life are often attained by simple means and the exercise of the or- 
dinary cjualities of common sense and perseverance. The every-day life, with 
its cares, necessities and duties, affords ample opportunities for acquiring 
experience of the best kind and its most beaten paths pro^'ide a true worker 
with abundant scope for effort and' self-improvement. The life history of 
John L. Gunn exemplifies what may be accomplished by a man who sets a 
high ideal in life and then has the courage to follow it all through his career. 
His life has additional interest because of his gallant service in the Civil War, 
in which he fought three years. 

John L. Gunn, the president of the Citizens' State Bank of Plainfield, 
w^as born March 16, 1837, on a farm in Rush county, Indiana. His parents 
were Dr. John L. and Lydia (Hornaday) Gunn. his father being a native of 
Virginia and his mother of North Carolina. Doctor Gunn came west when a 
young man and first settled in Kentucky. He then moved into Indiana, but 



HENDRICKS C0UN1Y, INDIANA. 577 

died shortly after coming into this state, in fact, dying a few months before 
John L., the subject of this sketch, was born. Doctor and Mrs. Gunn had one 
other child. Mrs. John Weir, who died in 191 1. The widow of Doctor Gunn 
later married John V. Hadley and moved to Hendricks county when John L. 
was two years of age. 

John L. Gunn was reared as a farmer's lad, attended the rude district 
schools of the ante-bellum days and then entered Northwestern Christian 
University, now Butler College, where he completed his education. While 
in the University he was a classmate of Judge John V. Hadley, of Danville, 
and the late Col. Eli Ritter, of Indianapolis. Shortly after leaving college 
the Civil War opened and when the President's call was issued he enlisted in 
Company I, Sixty-third Regiment. Indiana Volunteer Infantry. He was in 
the service for nearly three years and was mustered out as a duty sergeant. 
He participated in all of the battles of the Atlanta campaign, being in the 
battles of Buzzard Roost, Resaca, Peach Tree Creek, Marietta, Ringgold 
and many others. In the engagement at Hickory, Georgia, he was injured by 
the bursting of a shell near him. 

Air. Gunn was first married in 1858 to Caroline Cox, of Hendricks 
county, and to this marriage were born two daughters, Mrs. Lillie D. Belle, 
of Indianapolis, and Mrs. Laura L. Pike, of Plainfield. Some years after the 
death of his first wife Mr. Gunn married Mrs. Mityline Tomlinson Brj'ant, of 
Hendricks county. There have been no children by the second marriage. 

Until twenty years ago Mr. Gunn was actively engaged in agricultural 
pursuits and his success was entirely commensurate with his efforts. He was 
recognized as one of the best farmers of Guilford township and when he re- 
tired from the active management of his place he had one of the most up-to- 
date farms in the township. He still retains his farming interests and also 
has valuable property adjoining the town of Plainfield. After moving to 
Plainfield he became one of its most progressive citizens and has been an en- 
thusiastic advocate of local improvements, and during his service of six 
years on the town board of Plainfield he started the agitation for sidewalks 
and electric lights. For the past six years he has been president of the Citi- 
zens' State Bank of Plainfield and in that capacity has proved to be an able 
administrator of the various financial problems which come before the bank. 

Mr. Gunn has always been a Republican until the organization of the 
Progressive party, but has never held any office except that of town council- 
man of Plainfield. He is a man who has always kept his mind open to new 
ideas and keeps abreast of the best thought. In the course of his long life in 
the county he has won a wide circle of friends and acquaintances. 
(37) 



ej78 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

WILLIAM DAVIS LEWIS. 

Among the sturdy pioneers of Hendricks county, those who have made 
it their abiding place since its early days; who have seen it grow and develop 
from a sparsely settled country district to its present condition ut prosperity. 
none is better known than the subject of our present sketch. .V resident of 
the county for lionie than seventy years, he has proven himself loyal to the 
place of his birth, giving largely of his time, his thought and his influence to 
promote the growth and development of the commonwealth. 

William Davis Lewis, the son of Stephen Taylor and Nancy (Hornaday) 
Lewis, was born October lo, 1843, ^^^ Union township, this county, north of 
the town of Lizton. Here he spent his boyhood, learning the rudiments of 
his life's vocation, that of husbandry; laying the foundation of the sagacity 
and strength of physique which make for success in that calling. Here, also, 
in the township schools he received his schooling, attending the common 
schools, when he could, until the war broke out, and after the war,, with char- 
acteristic ambition, going to Danville for a further term of study in the 
Danville Academy. 

On October 7, 1861, in response to his country's call for volunteers to 
come to her defense, he left the peaceful, protected life of the farm and 
enlisted in the Army of the Cumberland, becoming a member of Company C, 
Fifty-first Indiana Volunteer Infantry. For three years he remained with 
his regiment, engaging with great bravery in all its battles, enduring all the 
hardships and deprivations of the campaigns, having several very narrow 
escapes, and when his term of service expired he re-enlisted for another term 
of three years, and served until the close of the war. He was mustered out 
of service on the 13th day of December, 1865. but after peace was declared. 
he was sent to San Antonio, Texas, returning to Indianapolis on January 13, 
1866. He was taken prisoner with his regiment near Rome, Georgia, and 
narrowly escaped the horrors of Libby prison, finally, however, receiving his 
parole. At the close of the service he was mustered out as a lieutenant. After 
leaving the service he came back to Hendricks county, followed farming and 
attended Danville Academy. 

On February 3. 1870. he was married to Mary Evaline Parker, the 
daughter of William G. and Martha (Wells) Parker. Like their forefathers, 
the young people clung to the peaceful life of the farm, building for them- 
selves a homestead on a twenty-eight-acre tract of land, most of which is 
now within the limits of Pittsboro, where they still reside, enjoying the fruits 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 579 

of their industry and thrift. During their long-continued residence in the 
county, VVilham Davis Lewis and his wife have stood for all that is best and 
noblest in the life of the communitv. Devoted members of the Christian 
church, that body has shown its appreciation of his sterling qualities and 
deep spirituality by electing him a deacon of the church for twenty-five con- 
secutive years, and also making him one of the trustees of the church prop- 
erty. One daughter has blessed their union, now Mrs. Ella G. Todd. She is 
the mother of two sons, William Lewis and Clifford Larker, and resides in 
Worcester, Massachusetts. 

The ancestors of Mr. Lewis, for generations, have engaged in the pursuit 
of agriculture. His paternal grandfather, Stephen Lewis, was a native of 
Rush county, spending his days until death called him on the homestead 
farm, north of Rush\ille. Here his son, Stephen Taylor Lewis, the father of 
the subject of this article, was born and reared. In 1837 Stephen left the 
home to his father and came to Hendricks county. Here he entered from the 
government forty acres of land north of Lizton, in Union township. This he 
later sold and purchased eighty acres east of Lizton, which became his perma- 
nent home until his death, December 13, 1855. He was the father of five 
children, Stephen, Hannah Jane, John H.. William Davis and Thomas D., 
of whom the subject is the only survivor. While yet a resident of Rush 
county, Stephen Taylor Lewis was married to Nancy Hornaday, and through- 
out his life she remained his faithful companion, rearing their family and 
remaining on the homestead farm until her death, six years after the demise 
of her husband. Death came to her on April 3, 1859. 

The wife of William Davis Lewis was also the daughter of a farmer, 
William G. Parker, a native of Kentucky. He, however, spent much of his 
time trading in live stock, and for a number of years was a merchant. He 
was the father of nine children, as follows: Mary Evaline (now Mrs. 
Lewis), Oliver Wilson, Sarah Jane (deceased), Robert Ellsworth, William 
M., Ruth A. (deceased), and tw^o little ones who died in infancy. JMr. Par- 
ker passed away in the year 1877. His wife was a native of North Carolina, 
and still survives, an honored member of the household of her daughter, Mrs. 
Lewis. 

In manner, Mr. Lewis is quiet, unassuming and sincere, having a per- 
sonality which invites the confidence of all with whom he comes in contact. 
He served as commander of Thomas Ashby Post, Grand Army of the Re- 
public, two or three terms. Eor forty-three years he has been a member of 
the Masonic order, and bears the honor of being the oldest member of this 
organization in Hendricks county. He was initiated October 19, 1869. at 



580 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Brownsburg. Although a stanch RepubHcan in poHtics and progressive in 
his ideas, he has never aspired to hold office, preferring to devote his energies 
to the social and religions life of the community; and his wholesome, godly 
example has not been without great influence for good, which is evidenced 
by the high regard in which he is held by a host of friends and neighbors. 



WILLIAM EDGAR BEAMAN. 

A farmer of Hendricks county, Indiana, who has a true love for his 
occupation is William E. Beaman, who has not been content to farm exactly 
in the same manner as his ancestors, but has moved from the beaten path and 
tried to keep pace with all the modern scientific methods of agriculture. For 
this reason he has been more than ordinarily successful and can attribute his 
measure of success to the fact that he has combined brains with brawn, a 
combination which is sure to yield a gratifying result when properly pursued. 

William Edgar Beaman, the son of Adam and Rebecca A. (McDaniel) 
Beaman, was born February 14, 1876, in Brown township, Hendricks county, 
Indiana. His father was native of Boone county, this state, and came to 
Hendricks county after his marriage, settling in Brown townshij? on an 
eighty-acre farm and here he lived the life of a farmer, dying on March 15, 
1909. He was a man who loved a simple, plain and unostentatious life and 
was capable of an enormous amount of hard work. When he was a young 
man he had a great reputation as an athlete. In the days when wrestling was 
in vogue, there was not a young man in the neighborhood who could lay him 
flat on his back. His wife was a native of this county, and was born near 
Brownsburg, in April, 1844, and she is still living at Pittsboro, this county. 
To Mr. and Mrs. Adam Beaman were born seven children: Charles S., 
Willard E., Otis (deceased), Albert Wesley (whose history is given else- 
where in this volume), William Edgar, Ada V. (who died in infancy), and 
George B. (deceased). 

William Edgar Beaman received a good, practical education in his town- 
ship school and almost completed high school. He remained at home until 
his marriage, assisting his father on the home farm, taking part in clearing 
land and learning by experience. He then began farming north of Pittsboro, 
where he remained nine years. In 1907 he bought his present farm of eighty 
acres, on which he conducts a general system of farming. 

Mr. Beaman was married October 9, 1898, to Julia Hufford, the daugh- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 58 1 

ter of Gideon Franklin and Mar}' Jane ( Stout) Hufford. Gideon Hufford 
was a native of Hendricks county, his 1)irth having occurred in Washington 
township, and he spent his life in the pursuit of agriculture, and died in 1903 
at Tilden, Indiana. Mrs. Hufford was a native of Marion county, this state, 
and is still living in this county, near Tilden, on the old homestead farm. 
Mr. and Mrs. Hufford were the parents of nine children: George F., de- 
ceased; Delilah, who died when young; Mrs. Carrie Garner; Theodore New- 
ton, deceased; Joel V.; Mrs. Ella Garner; Julia, the wife of Mr. Beaman; 
Edgar and John T. Mr. and Mrs. Beaman have four children, Doris M., 
Wilford Lawrence, Frances Isabel and Edgar. 

Fraternally, Mr. Beaman is a member of the Independent Order of 
Odd Fellows at Pittsboro, and, politically, holds his affiliation with the Demo- 
cratic party. He is a liberal and broad-minded farmer, who makes a deep 
study of farming as a practical profession, is of a decided mechanical turn 
of mind, and believes in the strict honesty of all men and is quick to resent 
any unfairness to himself or to any of his fellow citizens. He is strictly hon- 
est himself and believes in the Golden Rule in every-day life. 



THOMAS JACOB SANDUSKY. 

Hendricks county is fortunate in that she numbers among her prominent 
families many who are not only natives of the place themselves, but whose 
ancestors as well found here an abiding place of peculiar attraction. Alany 
of our early settlers came to this locality from other states, some even from 
abroad; but, after long and ofttimes perilous journeys, they appear to have 
found here what they sought, comfortable homes and the means of maintain- 
ing the same. Here their children and grandchildren were born and bred, 
some of them going out into various professions, and some loyally following 
in the footsteps of their fathers, tilling the soil, cultivating and improving 
not only their farms, but building roads and draining swamp lands, paving 
the way for the greater affluence of the present generation. 

Among these early settlers, the father of the subject of this article should 
be mentioned. James Sandusky was born in the year 182 1 in Bourbon 
county, Kentucky, but came to Brown township, Hendricks county, in the 
year 1864. At that time this locality was uncultivated and swampy, a verit- 
able wilderness of undergrowth. But Mr. Sandusky was alive to the possi- 
bilities of the place and did not hesitate at the hard work involved in clearing 



cS>2 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

and draining a tract of land in order that it might become a suitable location 
for human habitation; and the development of the place has proved the sound- 
ness of his judgment. 

On the 5th day of November, 1846. Air. Sandusky was married to 
Agnes Sandusky, of Vermillion county, Illinois; but five years later they were 
separated by the death of his wife, she passing away September 5, 185 1. He 
was later married to Elizabeth Susan Morgan, also of X'ermillion county, 
Illinois, who became the mother of two of his children, Thomas Jacob (the 
subject of this sketch) and Mary Agnes (Gibbs). She was born May 29. 
1826, and was called to her final home May 11, 1862. For the third time he 
sought and found a companion in Josephine Knaus, of Marion county, In- 
diana, she being a native of Sigmaringen, Germany. To this union were 
born four children, Elizabeth (Strawmyer), Antoinette (Beard), Josephine 
(Arbuckle), and Hannah (Coffman), deceased. 

Mr. Sandusky followed the pursuit of agriculture throughout his life, 
and when death called him, in 1893, he went from his own homestead to his 
final resting place. He was a member of the Masonic order and affiliated with 
the Democratic party. 

Thomas J. Sandusky, the immediate subject of this article, was born 
May 14, 1856, in Decatur county. Indiana, coming to Hendricks county with 
his father in 1864. On the 3d day of August, 1882, he was married to 
Susan E. Gibbs, a native of Mar.ion county, this state. Her parents, William 
and Elizabeth (Burden) Gibbs, were both born natives of England, but 
emigrated to this country not long after their marriage. He found his high- 
est efficiency in the wholesome, natural life of the farm, and here he brought 
his wife. Eleven children were born to them, as follows : Thomas, born in 
England ; Mary ; Anna, deceased ; William ; Daniel ; Homer, deceased ; Theo- 
dore, deceased ; Susan, now Mrs. Sandusky ; Merritt ; John and E\eritt. 
Death claimed the wife and mother in 1903, and six years later the father 
was called. To Mr. and Mrs. Sandusky were born two children, Ida M. (now 
Mrs. Everett) and Grover T. 

After his marriage, Thomas Sandusky continued the work taught him 
by his father, clinging to the life of the farmer, and very successfully he has 
proven. His farm shows the results of the labor and care expended upon 
it, being in a high state of cultivation, \\ell kept and showing the careful man- 
agement which has characterized liis labors. He is particularlv interested in 
his live stock, taking great pride in his sheep, of which he raises a goodly 
number. 

In manner, Air. Sandusky is (juiet and unassuming, but sociable withal; a 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 583 

progressive man and an excellent neighbor. He is a firm believer in Demo- 
cratic principles as promulgated by Jefferson ; is affiliated with the order of 
Knights of Pythias at Brownsburg, and both he and Mrs. Sandusky are well 
known members of the Methodist Protestant church, he being a trustee of 
this organization and she a charter member. He is also a trustee of the par- 
sonage at Lebanon, Indiana. That he is well and favorably known through- 
out the surrounding country is evidenced by the fact that he has served as 
justice of the peace of Brown township for ten years, from 1878 to 1888; 
and later was elected township trustee, serving in that capacity from 1895 to 
1900. In both offices he was known as a conscientious, honorable officer, 
exercising his powers with discretion and sound judgment. Altogether his 
life has been a thoroughly successful one, a splendid example to the com- 
munity at large, and by the coming generation his name will be remembered 
with high regard. 



CLARKSON B. THOMAS. 

Devoted to the noble work which his profession implies, the gentleman 
whose career we essay to briefly outline in the following paragraphs has been 
faithful and indefatigable in his endeavors and has not only earned the due 
rewards of his efforts in a temporal way but has also proved himself eminently 
worthy to exercise the important functions of his calling, by reason of his 
ability, his abiding sympathy and his earnest zeal in behalf of his fellow men. 
His understanding of the science of medicine is regarded by those who know 
him as being broad and comprehensive, and the profession and the public ac- 
cord him a distinguished place among the men of his class in Indiana. His 
has been a life of earnest and persistent endeavor, such as always brings a 
true appreciation of the real value of human existence — a condition that must 
be prolific of good results in all the relations of life. 

Clarkson B. Thomas, the son of David and Lydia (Brantinghan) 
Thomas, was born in Harrison county, Ohio, March 14, 1877. Both his par- 
ents were natives of Ohio and his father is now a prosperous farmer living in 
Plainfield, where the family removed in 1889. The famih^ are devoted and 
consistent members of the Friends church and are liberal supporters of that 
denomination. Mr. and Mrs. David Thomas are the parents of five children: 
Mrs. Eva T. Carter, of Plainfield: Dr. Clarkson B. ; Anna L., deceased; Rachel 
Emma, of Plainfield, and Mrs. Sina Althea Thomason, of Springville, Iowa. 

Doctor Thomas received his elementarv education at the Friends School 



584 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

at Sugar Grove, Hendricks county, and later attended the Friends Boarding 
School at Barnesville. Ohio, where he completed his high school training. In 
i8g8 he entered the Physio-Medical College at Indianapolis and graduated 
with the class of 1902. He at once began the active practice of medicine at 
Plainfield and has been uniformly successful since he started in this work. 
He is a member of the Hendricks County, Indiana and American medical 
societies. 

Doctor Thomas was married on June 3, 1903, to Alice E. Hayworth, the 
daughter of Isaiah M. and Mary Hayworth, of Wilmington, Ohio. Doctor 
and Mrs. Thomas have one adopted daughter, Phyllis. Both he and his wife 
are loyal members of the Friends church and are interested in all the activities 
of their chosen denomination. Doctor Thomas is devoted to his life work 
and feels that in this there is a chance for doing a great amount of good 
for suffering humanity. He is a great reader and close observer and keeps 
well informed upon all the latest methods of treating disease. His affable 
and genial manner readily win friends and he and his good wife are admired 
bv all with whom they are associated. 



JOEL JESSUP. 



To attain a worthy citizenship by a life that is always honored and re- 
spected even from childhood deserves more than mere mention. One may 
take his place in public life through some vigorous stroke of public policy, 
and even remain in the hearts of friends and neighbors, but to take the same 
position by dint of the practice of an upright life, and without a craving for 
exaltation and popularity, is worthy of the highest praise and commendation. 
The late Joel Jessup, one of the successful farmers and public-spirited citi- 
zens of Hendricks county, who was well known throughout this community, 
was a man respected and honored, not because of the vigorous training of his 
special talents, but because of his daily life, each day having been one that 
was above criticism and passed upon in the light of real, true manhood. 
Strong and forceful in his relations with his fellow men, he not only made 
his presence felt, but also gained the good will and commendation of both 
his associates and the general public, ever retaining his reputation among men 
for integrity and character, no matter how trying the circumstances, and 
never losing that dignity which is the birthright of a gentleman. Conse- 
quently his influence for good in the general life of his community was most 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 585 

potent, and he will long be sadly missed from the various circles in which he 
moved and over which his influence was like sunshine on a field of ripened 

wheat. 

The late Joel Jessup was born in Guilford township, this county, April 
6, 1832, and died on the old homestead farm, October 4, 1908. He was one 
of five children born to Joseph and Rachel (Jackson) Jessup, the other four 
children being Mary, Jackson L., Lethy and Mahalia Jane. Joseph Jessup 
and his wife were both natives of North Carolina, coming to this county 
shortly after their marriage in 1820 and entered one hundred and sixty acres 
of land. The deed for this land, signed by President John Quincy Adams, is 
still in the family and is a treasured relic, which is very much cherished. 
Joseph Jessup died at the age of seventy and his wife at the age of seventy- 
eight, both having been born in the latter part of the eighteenth century. 

Joel Jessup was given a very meager education, since the schools of his 
day were open but two or three months in the winter time and then offered 
very limited advantages. While Mr. Jessup was in the school room but a 
very short time, yet he laid the foundation for a desire for knowledge and, 
being a great reader all his life, he was, for a man of his age, well informed 
on most all subjects of the day. During all his life he lived on the farm and 
as a farmer was sufficiently progressive in keeping abreast of the times. As 
a boy he had to labor without any of the modern inventions, and as the 
modern agricultural implements came into use he added them one by one to 
his equipment until at the end of his life he w^as as well equipped for agri- 
culture as any farmer in the county. He is remembered not so much for his 
success on the farm, as for his work in the community at large, work which 
was directed along moral and civic lines. 

Mr. Jessup was married August 12, 1852, to Louisa Moon, and to this 
marriage were born four children: Harrison, born August 20, 1853, who 
was a farmer all his life and died December 30, 1905, leaving a widow and 
two sons. Walter and Carlos; Theodore W., born January 19, 1855, and died 
November 26, 1878, leaving a widow and two children, Nellie and Wallace 
T., the latter living on a part of the old homestead place; Jessie, born Sep- 
tember 10, 1856, who married Jesse Allen, of West Newton, Marion county. 
Indiana, and they have four children. The Allen family are now residents 
of Pasadena, California: William S., born April 11, 1858, who married 
Emma Card, and they have four children, Louisa, Halstead, Donald and 
Mary Eleanor ; William is now living on a part of the old home farm. 

The first wife of Mr. Jessup died August 20, 1885, and two years later, 
on June 22, 1887, he was married to Dr. Maria Allen, the daughter of Pres- 



586 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ton and Susannah (Jesstip) Allen. Her father came from Ohio and she 
was one of four children. She was educated in the local schools and at 
Spiceland Academy in Henry county, this state. She taught school for twenty 
years and it was not until she was thirty-eight years of age that she entered 
the Woman's Medical College of Chicago, Illinois (now a part of North- 
western University), from which she graduated three years later. She w-as 
married to Mr. Jessup two months after she graduated and has practiced for 
the past twenty-seven years in Hendricks county, Indiana. She ranks as one 
of the most prominent women practitioners in the state. She is a woman of 
great strength of character and with a tender and sympathetic feeling which 
should be the necessary concomitant of the technical experience needed for 
the successful physician. 

Mr. Jessup had a birthright in the Friends church and throughout his 
whole life was a firm believer in the doctrines as set forth by that church. 
Being naturally of a quiet and reserved disposition, one had to know him 
intimately to appreciate his real depth of Christian spirit. He was of a 
deeply religious nature and a careful student of the Bible, and his great faith 
in Christ was built on its teachings. As might be inferred, his politics were 
in keeping with his faith and he was a Prohibitionist of the most radical kind 
all his life. Such men as Joel Jessup are a blessing to any community, be- 
cause of their advocacy of wholesome living, pure politics and honesty in 
every-day life. Such men raise the standard of civic morality in every com- 
munity, and their example is such as to help those who are starting in life. 



AMOS C. WEAVER. 



Among the w^orthy citizens of Hendricks county, Indiana, whose resi- 
dence here has contributed in no small degree to the prestige of tne com- 
munity is Amos C. Weaver, now living a retired life in Indianapolis, Indiana. 
He lived in this county from the time of his Ijirth until 1903, when he retired 
from active business and removed to Indianapolis, where he now resides at 
No. 2019 Central avenue. Mr. Weaver is a man who, while laboring for his 
individual advancement, has never forgotten his obligations to the public and 
his support of such measures and movements as have been for the general good 
could always be depended upon. Although his life has been a busy one, his 
private affairs making heavy demands upon his time, he has never allowed it 
to interfere with his obligations as a citizen and neighbor. Through the long 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 587 

years of his residence in this community he has ever been true to the trusts 
reposed in him, whether of a pubhc or private nature ,and his reputation in a 
business way has been unassailable. Possessing in a marked degree those 
sterling traits which have commanded uniform confidence and regard, he is 
today honored by all who know him and is numbered among the representa- 
tive men of Hendricks county. He is one of the few remaining veterans of 
that great struggle which threatened to sever the Union in the sixties and 
special honor is due him for the four long and bloody years which he spent on 
the battle fields of the South. 

Amos C. Weaver, now living a retired life in Indianapolis, was born in 
Middle township, Hendricks county, Indiana, August 15, 1841. His parents 
were Thomas Jeft'erson and Anna (Hollis) Weaver, both natives of Ken- 
tuckv, he being born in 1805 ^"<^^ ^he in 1807. After their marriage in Ken- 
tuck v, they came to Indiana in 1836 and settled on a farm in Middle town- 
ship, this county, where they lived the remainder of their lives. He died 
April 3, 1873, and his widow passed away November lo, 1886. They were 
the parents of eight children, the subject of this sketch being the only one 
living-. The children, in the order of their birth, are as follows : William 
died at the age of seventeen; John B. died at the age of seventeen; Amanda 
Jane, who married Paxton Alexander, and died in 1854, at the age of twenty- 
two; Mary Matilda, who married Carlo Gadson, and died in May, 1864, at 
the age of twenty-two; James Lewis, who died in infancy; Amos C, the only 
one living; Ellis, who died in 1910, was a member of Company B, Seventh 
Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, for two years and was then attached 
to Battery B of the Fifth Regiment. EUis was a recorder of Hendricks 
county at one time and one of the prominent citizens of the county; the eighth 
and youngest child was Taylor, who died in infancy. 

Amos C. Weaver was reared on the farm and went through all the ex- 
periences common to boys on the farm. He attended school in the old log 
school houses of Middle township a few months each winter, and proved to 
be a very apt pupil. As soon as he had secured all the education he could get 
in the country schools he started to take the course in Northwestern Univer- 
sity at Indianapolis. In order to get money to continue his education. he 
taught school at Pittsboro, in his home county. The year 1861 found him 
twenty years of age and a teacher in Pittsboro, but when President Lincoln 
issued his call for troops, in the spring of 1861, young Weaver forsook his 
books and answered the call. He was mustered into the service on October 
8, 1 861, in Company A, Fifty-first Regiment of Indiana Volunteer Infantry, 
and was mustered out March 22, 1865. His company was attached to the 



588 HKNDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Armv of the \\'est, and he saw service in secures of the fiercest Imttles which 
were fought in the West. Among these were Shiloh, Perryville, Corinth. 
Stone's River. Lookout Mountain, and many other skirmishes and forays of 
lesser importance. He was wounded at Dalton, Georgia, on August 15, 1864, 
by a minie ball, which shattered his foot. The army surgeons wanted to 
amputate his foot, but he objected so strenuously that they dressed it the best 
they could and let him go. He was in a very precarious condition for some 
time, but finally fully recovered, due to his wonderful physical constitution. 
A few weeks before he was shot he had been elected captain, but his commis- 
sion did not arrive until after he was laid up in the hospital. He was sent 
home in November of 1864 and mustered out on March 22, 1865. 

In the spring of 1865 Mr. Weaver was elected trustee of Middle town- 
ship, and his administration of the duties of the office were so satisfactory 
that he was re-elected in the spring of 1867. While he was trustee he started 
in the mercantile business at Pittsboro. and continued in the business after his 
term as trustee had expired. For thirty-two years he operated a general store 
at Pittsboro and by his strict integrity and upright business dealings he ac- 
cumulated ^ goodly share of this world's goods. In addition to his mercantile 
establishment he was interested in farming and stock raising during most of 
his life in Flendricks county, and now owns three hundred and seventy-three 
acres of fine land near Pittsboro. Fortune has seemed to smile on all of his 
undertakings and lie has usually realized a substantial profit on all his invest- 
ments. In 1903 he retired from the active charge of business cares and is 
now getting a well-earned rest after years of hard labor. 

Mr. Weaver was married September 3. 1865. to Miriam Wells, the 
daughter of George Washington and Fanny Wells, of Middle township, this 
county. They are the parents of five children, all of whom have grown to 
maturity: Hollis H.. a merchant of Greentown. Indiana; Chester A., a 
farmer living near Pittsboro; Urban R.. who is a traveling salesman for a 
bankers' supply company of St. Louis; Grace D.. who is the wife of John F. 
Wood; and Francis Pearl, who is the wife of B. O. Kile and lives near Galves- 
ton, Texas. 

Mr. and Mrs. Weaver have been extensive travelers and have been across 
the continent to California, south to Florida. Georgia and every state on the 
gulf of Mexico. They have also traveled in Mexico and Canada and through- 
out the eastern part of the United States. They are both members of the 
Christian church, and Mr. Weaver is a member of the Free and Accepted 
Masons and the Grand Army of the Republic. At one time he was com- 
mander of Thomas Ashby Post No. 451, at Pittsboro. He has been a life-long 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 589 

Republican and has never seen any reason why he should change his allegiance 
to any other party. He has never held any office except that of trustee, which 
was immediately after he came home from the war. 

Mr. Weaver has been a man of exceptional business ability, sound dis- 
cretion and absolute integrity, factors which contributed to his success in a 
large degree. During all the years of his active career his life has been 
characterized by duty well performed, by faithfulness to every trust reposed in 
him, by industry, thrift and wisely directed effort, which has resulted in the 
acquisition of a liberal share of this world's goods, besides earning a reputa- 
tion which has never been tarnished by the commission of a single unworthy 
act. During his long life in Hendricks county he made friends everywhere, 
and when he left the county, in 1903, he was one of the widest known men in 
the county. His career is certainly to be admired and is a worthy example to 
put before the people of the coming generation. 



W. A. RUSHTON. 



One of the most difficult literary tasks is to write an unexceptionable 
review of a living man. li the life is worthy of record there is always danger 
of offending that delicacy which is inseparable from merit ; for even moderate 
praise, when it meets the eyes of the subject, is apt to seem fulsome, while a 
nice sense of propriety would not be the less wounded by a dry abstract con- 
taining nothing but names and dates. To sum up a career which is not yet 
ended would appear like recording events which have not yet transpired, since 
justly to estimate the scope and meaning of a history it is important that we 
have the closing chapter. In writing biographical notice, therefore, the 
chronicler from the moment he takes up his pen should consider the subject 
as no longer among his contemporaries, for thus he will avoid the fear of 
offending by bestowing praise where it is merited and escape the risk of 
giving but a fragmentary view of that w^hich must eventually be taken as a 
unit. At some risk, therefore, the writer assumes the task of placing on rec- 
ord the life and character of a man who, by the force of strong individuality, 
has achieved eminent success in the vocations to which he has addressed him- 
self and has won for himself an enviable place among the leading men of the 
city and county honored by his citizenship. 

W. A. Rushton, one of the leading citizens of Plainfield. Indiana, was 
born in Liberty township, Hendricks county, Indiana, April 4, 1874. His 



590 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

parents were Ira and Talitha (Bray) Rushton, both of whom were natives of 
this county. His father was a leader in church work and helped to establish 
the Salem Methodist Episcopal church. Ira Rushton was born August 13, 
1830. and died November 22, 1912, spending his entire life in Hendricks 
county. His widow is still living on the old home farm in Liberty town-hip. 
Mr. and Mrs. Ira Rushton were the parents of twelve children, nine of whom 
are still living: Mrs. Evaline Cra\ens, of Hinsdale, Kansas; Mrs. Laura E. 
Morrison, of Liberty township; James W., of Indianapolis; Carrie, of Amar- 
illo. Texas; Guy, of Liberty township; Mrs. Ola M. McCracken, of Monrovia, 
Indiana, and two sons who are still at home, Howard and Raymond. 

W. A. Rushton was reared on his father's farm and spent the life of the 
ordinary farmer's boy until he was twenty-one years of age. receiving his 
education in the district schools of his nieghborhood and later took a high 
school course at Belleville. With the intention of taking up teaching as a 
profession, he enrolled in the Tri-State College at Angola, Indiana, where he 
took the teachers' course. He Ijegan teaching in 1897 ^^^^ C)nly taught a part 
of one year. In 1898 he took up his present life work of an undertaker, and 
has continued in that business until the present time. He started in with the 
late William H. Hiss, a furniture dealer and undertaker of Plainfield, and 
remained with him for three years. He then went to Indianapolis and was 
manager of the Flanner & Buchanan undertaking establishment for four 
years. In January, 1905, he bought out William Hiss, of Plainfield, and has 
since conducted the business under his own name. He understands every 
phase of his business, being an especially competent embalmer, and because 
of his painstaking attention to the important duties incumbent upon him in 
his profession, and his innate courtesy in all his associations with his patrons, 
he has earned a warm place in the esteem of those who know him. 

While working in Indianapolis, Mr. Rushton was married, on October 
28, 1903, to Cophine Mills, daughter of William H. and Anna Mills, of Hen- 
dricks county, and to this union there have been born two daughters, Lois 
Mona and Marcia Dena. 

Mr. Rushton has been affiliated with the Democratic party since reach- 
ing his majority, but owing to the nature of his business he has never been ac- 
tive in politics. He and the members of his family are adherents of the Friends 
church and are very active in the various departments of the church work of 
that denomination. Fraternally, he is a member of the Independent Order of 
Odd Fellows, the Knights of Pythias and the Free and Accepted Masons. 
Mr. Rushton has taken an active interest in the civic and moral life of his 
community, and is at present acting as president of the Plainfield library 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 59I 

board and takes a very active interest in the management of the local library. 
His standing in the State Funeral Directors' Association is shown by the fact 
that he has been president of the state association and also secretary. He has 
also been secretary of the local Masonic lodge and is past chancellor of the 
lodge of Knights of Pythias. Mr. Rushton is a man who is always found in 
hearty accord with all movements which have for their object the advance- 
ment of the educational, moral, social or material welfare of his community. 
He is a man of large experience, sound judgment and sagacity and is a keen 
observer of public events, and on which he holds decided convictions. He is a 
man of positive character and sterling worth, and his value to the community 
is evidenced by the high position which he has ever held in the esteem of his 
fellow citizens. 



JAMES C. STAFFORD. 



James C. Stafford, one of the large number of physicians in the same 
family, was born September 14, 1S81, near Newcastle, Henry county, Indiana. 
His parents, John E. and Alpharetta (Nicholson) Stafford, were both natives 
of the same county and were born on adjoining farms. His father is a 
prosperous farmer in Henry county, Indiana, today, both parents being still 
living. Doctor Staft'ord is the only child in the family. 

Dr. Daniel Hastings Stafford, the subject's grandfather, graduated from 
the Physio-Medical Institute of Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1866, and practiced 
mostly in Henry county, Indiana, where his death occurred in 1900. He had 
three sons who were doctors, James A., of Newcastle, Indiana; Lindley, de- 
ceased, and William H., deceased, who practiced at Blountsville, Indiana. 
Daniel H. Staft"ord had also four grandsons who were doctors, W. H., of 
Newcastle; C. A. and Lindley H., at Indianapolis, and James C, of Plainfield. 

Doctor Staft'ord received his common school education in district schools 
of his home neighborhood and then graduated from the Rich Square high 
school in Henry county in 1898. Since this was only a three years' course, he 
graduated from the Newcastle high school in 1901 and then spent one year in 
the State University at Bloomington, Indiana. However, the call of the 
physician was not to be denied, and as a result he decided to enter the Indiana 
Physio-Medical College at Indianapolis, where he took the full four years' 
course, entering the fall of 1904, and graduating with the class of 1908. 
He came to Plainfield in November, 1908. and here he opened up an office for 
the general practice of medicine, and has never regretted his choice of loca- 



CQ2 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

tions. His practice has gradually improved and he now has his share of the 
patronage of the community. 

Doctor Stafford was married August 13, 1905, to Lura White, the 
daughter of Joseph and Sarah White, of Linden, Montgomery county, Indi- 
ana, and to them have been born three children, James Linden, born March 
31. 1907; Lura Catherine, born August 13, 1909, and William Clayton, born 
]une 10, 1913. Doctor Stafford is a member of the Hendricks county and 
Indiana State medical societies, and is a wide reader of all kinds of medical 
literature. He keeps well informed on all the progressive methods of treat- 
ing disease and his office is well ecjuipped with all the up-to-date appliances 
which are found in the modern office of the be.'^t physicians. 

Doctor Stafford is a member of the Knights of Pythias, holding the office 
of past chancellor of the Plainfiekl lodge of that order. Although he was 
reared a Republican, he is not a partisan by any means, but in all local elec- 
tions he votes for the man rather than for any particular party. However, 
he is well read on the political issues of the day and can discuss them intelli- 
gently. It is an interesting fact that there have been eight physicians in the 
Stafford family, the original Doctor Stafford having been born at Greensboro, 
Indiana, his parents coming to this state from North Carolina in an early day. 

Doctor Stafford gives all his time and attention to his practice and is 
rapidly being regarded as one of the most successful physicians of this section 
of the state. As a successful physician he has made friends throughout the 
county and retains the respect and esteem of all classes of people. 



JOSHUA S. THARP. 

The biographies of enterprising men, especially of good men, are in- 
structi\'e as guides and incentives to others. The examples they furnish of 
patient purpose and steadfast integrity strongly illustrate what is in the power 
of each to accomplish. Some men belong to no exclusive class in life; ap- 
parently insurmountable obstacles have in many instances awakened their 
dormant faculties and served as a stimulus to carry them to ultimate renown. 
The instances of success in the face of adverse fate would seem almost to 
justify the conclusion that self-reliance, with a half chance, can accomplish 
any reasonable object. The gentleman whose life history is herewith out- 
lined is a man who has lived to good purpose and has achieved a splendid 
success. Bv a straightforward and commendable course he has made his 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 593 

way to a respectable position in the business world, winning the hearty ad- 
miration of the people of his county and earning a reputation as an enter- 
prising, progressive man of affairs which the public has not been slow to 
recognize and appreciate. 

Joshua S. Tharp, one of the representative citizens of Brownsburg and 
for some time president of the Brownsburg Bank, was born on November 8, 
1838, in Hendricks county, Indiana, and is the son of James and Mary 
(Yount) Tharp, the former of whom was a native of Shelby county, Ken- 
tucky, and a son of John and Rebecca (Lee) Tharp, both natives of that 
county, who came to Indiana at a later date, settling in Hendricks county 
about five miles north of Danville. James Tharp remained under the pa- 
rental roof in the Kentucky home until he was eighteen years of age, when 
he married, and together he and his young wife came to Hendricks county, 
Indiana, on horseback, leading a pack horse with a few of their cherished 
possessions. This was in 1828 and they took up their abode west of Danville, 
on Mill creek, being among the very first settlers in that locality. He was 
among the very few who did not enter government land, and he passed the 
remainder of his life on the home place he secured when first coming to In- 
diana. He was the father of ten children, among whom was Joshua S., the 
immediate subject of this sketch. 

Joshua S. Tharp remained with his father until he was twenty-one years 
of age, when he was united in marriage with Mary J. Fausset, when they 
took up their residence on his grandfather's farm, where they remained for 
fifteen years, making their home with his uncle, William Tharp, until the time 
of his death. They then took up their residence on their own farm, about a 
half-mile north of his uncle's homestead, and there they resided for twenty- 
five years. They later removed to Pittsboro, where they remained for less 
than a year, and from there came to Brownsburg, which they have since 
made their home. Mr. Tharp disposed of his farm north of Danville in 1906, 
when he purchased one hundred and sixty acres in Brown township, Hen- 
dricks count}\ and also purchased town property in Brownsburg, two of the 
pieces being business blocks. 

Mr. Tharp has been twice married. His first wife, Mary J. Fausset, 
who died in 1883, was a daughter of Robert Fausset and wife. To Mr. 
Tharp, by his first wife, were born ten children, namely: Willard. who died 
young; Isaac \\'esley, who married Julia Xoland and has four children, one 
of which died in infancy and the others being married; Edith, the eldest, is 
the wife of Raymond Smith and lives north of Danville; Clarence, who mar- 
(38) 



594 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ried Lessie Day, lives on the same farm north of Danville ; the other child 
is Hollis, who remains at home. Another son of Joshua S. Tharp, James, 
died while yomig. Arie O. became the wife of William S. Elmore, residing 
a mile and a half south of Pittsboro, and have a family of eight children. 
William R. resides in Indianapolis. His wife was an Indianapolis girl and 
they have a family of three children. Cora E. married Dan Hendricks and 
is living about five miles north of Danville. Geneva married Willard O. 
Johnson. They reside northeast of Pittsboro and have a family of four chil- 
dren. Florence, who resides in Lizton, is the wife of Edgar Biggs and has 
one child. H. Edgar Tharp married Minnie Graham and lives four miles 
north of Brownsburg. He is an auctioneer and is very well known all over 
the county. Mary J., the youngest child, died while young. In 1885 Mr. 
Tharp united in marriage with Rachael R. (Hendricks) Harrison. She is 
the daughter of Peter and Mary Ann (Wood worth) Hendricks and was born 
in Putnam county, Indiana, near Maysville, in 1845. Her parents were na- 
tives of the state of Kentucky, coming to Putnam county soon after their 
marriage. They raised a family of nine children. In i860 she was united 
in marriage with Benjamin Harrison, whose death occurred in 1882. To 
their union were born eight children, four of whom are still living. Ora, 
one of her daughters, is the wife of Eddie Jack and the mother of four chil- 
dren. They live in Indianapolis. William H., a son, married Carrie Pelcher 
and they reside with their four children in Centralia, Washington. Francis 
M. took as his wife Hattie Thomas and they also have a family of four chil- 
dren and make their home north of Danville. Edgar, who has two children, 
married Marie Craven and makes his home in Tipton. 

Politically a Democrat, Mr. Tharp has been for many years actively in- 
terested in the welfare of his community. He served on the county board of 
review in 1913 and also in 19 14, and is one of the best posted men in the 
county as to land valuations of the county. He has ever done all within his 
power to advance the moral and material interests of his locality. That Mr. 
Tharp is enterprising in his operations is evidenced by the fact that his busi- 
ness interests are varied. He was president of the Brownsburg Bank, both 
as a private bank and since it was made a state bank; buys and sells wool, 
sells insurance and has many other duties devolving upon him in connection 
with the property he owns both in town and country. For twenty-seven years 
he was a director of the Hendricks County Mutual Fire Insurance Company. 
Fraternally, he is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons and both Mr. 
and Mrs. Tharp are members of the Order of the Eastern Star. Religiously, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 595 

they are members of the Baptist church and are sincerely interested in the 
workings of same. 

Mr. Tharp is a man who has ever made his influence felt for good in 
his community, being a man of sterling worth, whose life has been closely 
interwoven with the history of the community in which he resided. The 
well regulated life he has led, thereby gaining the respect and admiration of 
all his fellow citizens, entitles him to representation in a biographical work 
of the scope intended in the present one. Genial and unassuming in his re- 
lations with his fellow men, he has won and retains the confidence and good 
will of all wath whom he comes in contact. 



RICHARD D. PLUMMER. 

The Plummer family has been identified with the history of Hendricks 
county, Indiana, since 1825, and during this period of nearly ninety years 
they have taken their part in the civic, moral, educational and religious life 
of their respective communities in such a way as to stamp them as a family 
of excellent characteristics. Richard D. Plummer has spent his whole career 
of more than three score years in this county, and no more public-spirited 
citizen has ever lived within the limits of the county. The interests of his 
county has been one of the mainsprings of his actions and he has done many 
disinterested deeds which stand to his credit. Starting life under pioneer 
conditions, he has risen to a position of prominence and during his long 
career in the county has aided in every way the growth of its material inter- 
ests and the progress of its prominent industries. 

Richard D. Plummer, the proprietor of three farms in this county, ag- 
gregating three hundred and eighty-nine acres, was born on June 24, 1848, 
in Eel River township, this county. He is a son of Joseph and Ann (Day) 
Plummer, his father being a native of Greene county, Ohio, born on October 
17, 1813, the son of Levi and Mary Plummer. Levi Plummer was born in 
Maryland and his wife in this state, and in 1815 they came to Fayette county, 
Indiana, where they lived for five years. They then moved to Morgan 
county, this state, and, after a residence of five years in that county, came to 
Hendricks county and spent the remainder of their days in this county. 

Joseph Plummer, the father of Richard D., was reared to manhood amid 
the scenes of pioneer life in this county and received only a meager common 
school education. He was married August 2, 1832, to Ann Day, in Morgan 



5C)6 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

county, this state, and to this union were born nine children, Mary. Alartha, 
Thomas, Levi, Hannah, Fannie, John, Ann and Richard D. The mother of 
these children died January i8, 1870, and on May 14, 1872, Joseph Plummer 
married Lydia Burgen, the daughter of Isaac and Sarah Burgen. who were 
among the early settlers of Hendricks county. In the spring of 1835 Mr. 
PMunimer settled in the eastern ])ortion of Eel River township, where he 
lived the life of a prosperous fanner until his death, in November, 1896. 
He had started in life with nothing, but by careful business methods and 
strict attention to his business he became the owner of five hundred and sixty- 
five acres of excellent farming land in this county. 

Richard D. Plummer has lived his whole life in Eel River and Center 
townships. He attended the rude log school houses of his home neighbor- 
hood during his boyhood days and assisted his father on the farm during his 
summer vacations. The schools of that day were only three months in 
length' and the instruction was confined principally to reading, writing and 
arithmetic. Mr. Plummer has devoted his whole life to agricultural pursuits 
and has met with a measure of success which has been commensurate with his 
efforts. He married in 1872, and in 1876 bought his first farm of eighty 
acres, and to this he has added from time to time until he is now the owner 
of three hundred and ninety acres of land in the county. He is a man of 
powerful physi(jue and has done a great deal of hard manual labor in his time. 
In the days when wheat was cut with the cradle, he could cut as much wheat 
as any man in the neighborhood and keep it up day after day. 

Mr. Plummer was married August 20, 1872, to Mary E. Margason, the 
daughter of John and Elizabeth (Griggs) Margason, early settlers of Center 
township, this county. The Margasons came from Kentucky to Jefferson 
county, Indiana, and later settled in this county, where they purchased land in 
Center township. Mr. and Mrs. Plummer are the parents of five children: 
Horace, a manufacturing jeweler and engraver in Indianapolis, with ofiices 
in the State Life building in that city; Marsalice, who is now in the West; 
Lydia is the wife of Richard Harrison, of Danville, and the mother of two 
children, Roy and Evangeline; Lula, who is still living with her parents; 
Oliver Earl, who is the chemist for a gypsum factory in Ohio, was recently 
married to Dora Padget. 

I'olitically, Mr. Plummer is a supporter of the Republican party. The 
high standing which he occupies among the agriculturists of Hendricks county 
is attributable largely to his indefatigable perseverance and untiring energy. 
\^'hile his private affairs naturally receive the major portion of his time and 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 597 

attention, yet he is interested in matters of public interest and is prominent in 
the local affairs of his community. In business circles he is respected by all 
with whom he comes in contact and occupies a foremost position among the 
representative citizens of his county. 



JOSEPH C. MORGAN. 



The following is a brief sketch of one who, by close attention to business, 
has achieved marked success in the world's affairs and risen to an honorable 
place among the enterprising men of the county with which his interests are 
identified. It is a plain record, rendered remarkable by no strange or myster- 
ious adventure, no wonderful and lucky accident and no tragic situation. Mr. 
Morgan is one of those estimable citizens whose integrity and strong per- 
sonality must force them into an admirable notoriety, which their modesty 
never seeks, who command the respect of their contemporaries and their pos- 
terity and leaves the impress of their individuality u]3on the age in which they 
live. 

Joseph C. Morgan, a plasterer and public-spirited citizen of Plainfield, 
was born April 3, 1859, at Monrovia. Morgan county, Indiana. His parents 
were William H. and Maria (Marvin) Morgan, his father being a native of 
Kentucky and his mother of Ohio.- His father was born in 1824 and learned 
the trade of a plasterer in Kentucky before coming to Morgan county, in 
1855. In 1863 William Morgan moved to Plainfield, Indiana, where he fol- 
lowed his trade until his death, in 1894, at the age of seventy. He was a 
prominent Mason and was always very much interested in the affairs of the 
lodge. Mr. and Mrs. William jNIorgan were the parents of seven children, all 
of whom are living: Joseph C, the immediate subject of this sketch; O. P., 
of Plainfield; Mrs. Rolena Hagee, of Plainfield; Mary, who has been a teacher 
in the Plainfield schools for the past twenty years; Nannie, of Monrovia, In- 
diana; and Mrs. Minnie Bridges, the wife of Doctor Bridges, of Plainfield. 

Joseph C. Morgan was given a good practical education in the public 
schools of Plainfield, and when a small lad began to help his father. He was 
thus early initiated into all of the details of the plasterer's trade and there is 
no trick in the trade with which he is not familiar. It is safe to say that there 
is no more efficient and artistic workman in this section of the state than Mr. 
Morgan, and as a result he has always had all the work he could handle, and 
yet his customers have been perfectly satisfied with his work in every par- 
ticular. 



598 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Joseph C. Morgan has never married, but for many years has Hved with 
his aunt in Plainfield. He owns a fine home, which is equipped with all the 
modern conveniences. In his fraternal relations he is affiliated with the Free 
and Accepted Masons and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows for the past 
twenty-five years. He has always voted the Republican ticket, and while he 
keeps well informed on all the current questions of the day, he has never been 
a seeker after political preferment. 

The family history of Mr. Morgan is of more than ordinary interest, and 
he is justified in being proud of his progenitors on both sides of the family. 
His mother's father, Clare Marvin, was a pioneer of Morgan count}', Indiana, 
having settled nea.r Monrovia about 1840. Clare Marvin was born in New 
York city, and was in the War of 181 2, taking part in the siege of Baltimore. 
The Marvin family is of English descent, the first representative of the family 
coming to America in 1793. Nancy Marvin, another one of the early mem- 
bers of the family to come to America, was born in London in 1788. and died 
in Morgan county, Indiana, in 1892, at the advanced age of one hundred and 
four years. She retained her faculties to the last and it was from her that 
most of the family history has been obtained. 

Joseph C. Morgan has lived a life of usefulness and has always taken an 
active part in the civic life of the community where he has resided for so 
many years. Personally, he is genial and companionable, enjoys a wide ac- 
quaintance throughout this section of the state, and is a popular member of 
the circle in which he moves. 



JONAH S. BRILL. 



The biographies of enterprising men, especially of good men, are in- 
structive as guides and incentives to others. The examples they furnish of 
patient purpose and steadfast integrity strongly illustrate what it is in the 
power of each to accomplish. Some men belong to no exclusive class of life; 
apparently insurmountable obstacles have in many instances awakened their 
dormant faculties and served as a stimulus to carry them to ultimate renown. 
The instances of success in the face of adverse fate would seem almost to 
justify the conclusion that self-reliance, with a half chance, can accomplish 
any reasonable object. The gentleman whose life history is herewith outlined 
is a man who has lived to good purpose and achieved a splendid success. By 
a straightforward and commendable course he has made his way to a respect- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 599 

able position in the business world, winning the hearty admiration of the 
people of his county, and earning a reputation as an enterprising and pro- 
gressive man of afifairs which the public has not been slow to recognize and 
appreciate. 

Jonah S. Brill, one of the successful and enterprising farmers of Hen- 
dricks county, who is now living a retired life in Plainfield, was born May 26, 
185 1, in Frederick county, Virginia. His parents, John Harrison and Sarah 
Ann ((Millhorn) Brill, were both natives of Virginia, his father's birth oc- 
curring December 6, 1819, and died January 6, 1894, while his mother was 
born May 14, 1821, and died January 6, 1870. John H. Brill was a stage 
driver for many years and covered the route from Winchester, Virginia, to 
Knoxville, Tennessee. When Jonah S. was about one year old, his father 
came with his family to Indiana, settling in Liberty township, Hendricks 
county, where they lived until 1867, when they moved to Sheridan county, 
Missouri. John H. Brill and his wife both died in that state. They reared 
a large family of thirteen children, nine of whom are living. Dr. James H. 
Brill, of Indianapolis; Mrs. Mary F. Lambert, of Hadley, Hendricks county; 
Jonah S.. the immediate subject of this sketch; Mrs. Eliza Morgan, of Spring- 
field, Missouri; Mrs. Rachel E. Needham, of Mountain Grove, Missouri; 
Amos M., of Kansas City, Missouri; Mrs. Elizabeth C. Coctrell, of Okmulgee, 
Oklahoma; Charles W., of Lampher, Colorado, and Mrs. Harriett E. Elliott, 
of Forest Green, Missouri. 

Jonah S. Brill came to Hendricks county from Virginia with his parents 
when he was a mere babe in arms and has lived here all his life except five 
years, when he lived in Sheridan county, Missouri. His education was re- 
ceived in this state and he finished his educational training in Missouri, where 
he lived from 1867 to 1872. At the age of twenty he began to learn the trade 
of a carriage trimmer in Indianapolis, and continued to work at this occupa- 
tion for six years. He then took up farming in Liberty township, this county, 
and continued to follow the vocation of a farmer until 1897, when he removed 
to Plainfield and left the active operation of the farm to younger hands. A 
few years ago, in 1907, he sold his farm and is now living a retired life in 
Plainfield. 

Mr. Brill was married October 27, 1880, to Nannie Williams, the 
daughter of Nathan C. and Katherine (McPherson) Williams. The one 
child born to this union died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Brill are both de- 
voted and consistent members of the Methodist Episcopal church at Plain- 
field. Fraternally, Mr. Brill is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, 
but has never taken an active part in politics, although he has always voted 



^°° HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



w.th the Democrat,c party. Mr. Brill l,as the rep„tation of a progressive man 
of aftairs, >s broad mmdecl and public spirited, and has not been backward in 
giymg h>s support to every movement for the upbuilding and development of 
h,s comnum,ty Personally, he is a most companionable man and s an ap- i 
prec.atne men.ber of the circles in Avhich he moves J 

Mrs. Brill was born m Liberty township. Hendricks county. Her par- " 

nts were both natives of North Carolina and both came to Hendricks county 

Inchana when they were small children, grew up and married here, and "ed 

n L,berty townsh.p. He was a farmer. They were members of the M ho 

d.st Ep,scopal church. They had two children. One son, Luther vho was 

Will-'" ''5°; ™"'^^' C-"'-'- Wheatley. and died m 1876. Nathan C 
Wdhams d,ed February ,4, 1886: his wife died December 04 ,89. 



-M.ARTIN LUTHER JOHN.SO.N. 

Among the thriving farmers and stock raisers of Hendricks county the 

2 out w,th prac ,cally no cap.tal or assistance, he has gradt.allv forged to 

iun,ty, wh,ch he has seen develop to a foremost position in agricultural in,- 

porcance, and ,t ,s useless to add that he has played an important role in this 

vork, havmg always had the affairs of his locality at heart and readv at all 

.™es to further any laudable undertaking having as its object ^^ general 

Martm Luther, Johnson, one of the prosperous farmers of Middle town- 
ship, was born m 1853 in Boone county, Indiana. His parents ^vere Patrick 
nd Clemens (Hanna) Johnson. Patrick Johnson was a native of K n- 

•ears of ""' u" ";\'° '''°°"' ™""'-^' "'"' ''^ P"^"'^ "'"«' '- "'- eleven 
yea s of age. His father entered eighty acres near Br.mswick. upon first 

s ttlmg m Boone county, but in 1865 moved into Hendricks countv and bought 

one hun.lred and s.xt,- acres of land in Brown township. He" received his 

son in"a'Mr"/t' ""f '-'"™'" ""^ ^'■°'' '^P"' '* 1865. Patrick John- 
son, m add.t,on to h,s farmmg, bought and sold a large an,ount of stock 
dr,y,ng h,s stock to Indianapolis to n,arket. He continued to farm his one 

c"u "ed T T ""' T'" ''°"' '"'° -^^^" '"^*"°- •- -'-'"■ "*ich 
occurred November 22, 1006 The wife nf Pnfr.v^i- t i • . ' 

7^u. Lilt ^\]Ie ot i^atrick JohiLson \\ as a native of 




MARTIN L. JOHNSON 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 6oi 

Kentucky, who came to Boone county with her parents when a small girl. 
She died in 1905. Mr. and Mrs. Patrick Johnson were the parents of a 
large family of thirteen children: George H., Mrs. Mary Johnson (de- 
ceased), James F., John C, Albert N., Alartin Luther, Mrs. Nancy E. Burks, 
Mrs. Martha Caroline Cassaday, William P., Wilson T., Willard P., Mrs. 
Hanna Florence Davis and Herbert M. 

Martin Luther Johnson spent the first twelve years of his life in Boone 
county and there received part of his education. After moving to this county 
he attended school for several years, receiving" most of his schooling in 
Hendricks county. When he was married he only had twenty acres, but by 
honest endeavor and hard toil he has added to his land holdings from time 
to time, until now he owns a farm of one hundred and forty acres. He 
raises the crops of this locality and adds to his annual income by handling a 
considerable amount of live stock every year. In 1899 he built a large barn 
and has his whole farm improved in every way, in order to produce the best 
results with the minimum amount of effort. For fifteen years he operated a 
threshing machine outfit in connection with his farming, deriving no small in- 
come from this line of business. 

Mr. Johnson was married in 1876 to Leonora Schenck, the daughter of 
Isaac Harvey and Nancy J. (Harris) Schenck. Isaac Schenck was born in 
Butler county, Ohio, and his wife in Pulaski county, Kentucky. After mar- 
riage Mr. and Mrs. Schenck settled in Brown township, where he died in 
1895 and she in 1912. Mr. and Mrs. Schenck were the parents of eleven 
children: Mary Elizabeth, deceased; Mrs. Rebecca A. Young, deceased; 
Tilghman Howard, deceased; Mrs. Caroline Pitzer, deceased; Mary Ellen, 
deceased; Levi H. ; Samuel Riley; James B. ; Leonora, the wife of Mr. John- 
son; Thomas Jeft'erson and George. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson are the parents 
of seven daughters, six of whom are living and five are married. Emma is 
deceased. The daughters living are : Mrs. Delia Garner, Mrs. Ota Weaver. 
Mrs. Luella Stonebreaker, Mrs. Pearl Coleman, Miss Mary Etta Johnson and 
Mrs. Fern Hubble. 

Politically, Mr. Johnson has always advocated the principles of the 
Republican party and has never seen any reason why he should change his 
adherence to that of any other party. He and his wife are members of the 
Regular Baptist church and he is a deacon and trustee in the church. Air. 
Johnson has made a success of his life work, because he has been a hard 
worker and honest in his dealings with his fellow men. He is known among 
his friends and neighbors as a man who deals justly and a man who has ac- 



602 HENDRICKS COtJNTY^ INDIANA. 

quired his present position, only through the dint of saving, honesty and good 
management. He is a man of strong will and obliging, a friend to the needy 
and distressed, one of those sterling men who makes good in any community. 



REV. JOSEPH N. GREENE. 

The life of the scholarly or professional man seldom exhibits any of 
those striking incidents that seize upon public feeling and attract attention to 
himself. His character is generally made up of the aggregate qualities and 
qualifications he may possess as these may be elicited by the exercise of the 
duties of his vocation or the particular profession to which he belongs. The 
highly honored and esteemed subject of this sketch is a man of well rounded 
character, sincere, devoted and loyal, so that there are many salient points 
which render consonant a tribute to him in this compilation. He has not been 
content to hide his talents amid life's secjuestered ways, but has by force of 
will and a laudable ambition to succeed, forged to the front into a position 
which stamps him as a man of extraordinary ability. His life has been one of 
hard study and he stands today a man well equipped to perform his work in 
life. There is no higher calling than that of a minister of the Gospel and the 
good that he does never receives its full reward in this world. Rev. Joseph N. 
Greene has not only made a notable success as a minister, but has also earned 
a wide reputation as a lecturer on Shakesperian subjects. In addition he has 
entered the literary field and produced three books which have added not a 
little to his prestige. 

Rev. Joseph N. Greene, now pastor of the Broadway Methodist Episcopal 
church of Indianapolis, and a former resident of Danville, Indiana, was born 
in Valparaiso, Indiana, June 25, 1868. His parents were Nelson and Mary 
Jane (Funk) Greene, his father also being a minister in the Methodist church. 
Nelson Greene was a native of Ohio and came to this state as a young man, 
married at Warsaw and was a pastor in the Methodist churches of Indiana 
for more than half a century. Among the places where he held charges were 
Warsaw, Valparaiso, Brazil, Greencastle, Marion and Danville. He first 
came to Danville about 1869 and upon his retirement from the ministry he 
bought a home in that town and continued to reside there until his death, 
September 29, 1910. Mr. and Mrs. Nelson Greene were the parents of eight 
children, six of whom are living: Mrs. M. A. Keeney, of Danville; Edward 
J., of Danville; Charles, of West Lafayette; Mrs. John F. Way, of Mitchell, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 603 

South Dakota; Anan C, of South Bend, Indiana. His widow, the mother 
of Rev. Greene, is still living at Danville at the advanced age of eighty- six. 

Rev. Joseph N. Greene received his elementary and high school education 
in the public schools of Danville and his theological training in the Boston 
School of Theology, graduating from the latter institution in 1^97.' Im- 
mediately after graduating from the high school he went into business in Dan- 
ville, but within a short time he began to make preparations to enter the 
ministry. By the time he was twenty-six years of age he had passed all of the 
examinations and was admitted to the Northwest Indiana conference. Then 
in order to prepare himself for more efficient work he entered the Boston 
School of Theology and after completing the course in that school he received 
a call to the Grace Methodist Episcopal church at Terre Haute ( 1897-1899). 
The appointments which he has held since that tmie are as follows : Williams- 
port, Indiana (1899-1901); Maple Avenue church, Terre Haute (1901- 
1905); Brazil, Indiana (1905-1910); Watertown, South Dakota (1910- 
1912); Broadway church, Indianapolis (1910 to the present time). All of 
these appointments have been under the Northwest Indiana conference except 
the Watertown charge, which was under the jurisdiction of the Dakota con- 
ference, and the Broadway, Indianapolis, charge, which is in the Indiana 
conference. 

Rev. Greene was married to Adah L. Titus, of Williamsport, the daugh- 
ter of Mr. and Mrs. Jesse W. Titus, on October 18, 1900. They have one son, 
Warren Nelson, born October 18, 19 12. 

The minister who can reach the public through the printed page is an 
exception and if he can do so his field of usefulness is vastly increased. Rev. 
Greene is one of the very few ministers who can write as well as preach, and 
two of his books have had many favorable notices. His first volume was 
entitled "The Gospel in Literature" and is a book of genuine merit. In it he 
displays a wide range of scholarship and erudition which gives to the book 
a solidity often lacking in volumes of a similar nature. His second publica- 
tion, "The Funeral," is for the use of ministers and the hearty reception 
which it has received indicates that it is of real worth. A third book, under 
the title "The Exalted Fisherman," has just been issued by the Methodist 
Book Concern of Cincinnati and New York. 

Rev. Greene has always been a student of literature and has made a 
special study of Shakespeare. He frequently gives lectures on Shakesperian 
subjects before literary clubs, on such topics as "The Women of Shakespeare," 
"The Supernatural in Shakespeare," "Hamlet," and "Retributive lustice in 
Shakespeare." In these lectures he displays a deep insight in the literature of 



604 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

the Elizabethan period and analyzes the mysteries of the Bard of Avon in a 
manner which bespeaks the profound student. 

It is interesting to note that while Rev. Greene was the pastor of the 
Brazil church, he was the moving figure in the movement to increase the 
attendance of the Sunday school. The result has been that the Sunday school 
m that town now is the largest in the world. 

Rev. Greene is quite actively interested in public affairs, taking the part 
of a good citizen in public measures and reforms; strong and alert, energetic 
and persistent, he has had marked influence for good in his community. In 
his politics he is independent, always voting for the best men regardless of 
their political affiliations. In all the pastorates he has held he has been 
popular and has built up the congregation, strengthened the work in all its 
departments and quickly won his way into the affections of his parishioners. 
He is profoundly versed in theology, a scholarly, high-minded, whole-souled 
gentleman, fearless in his denunciation of sin wherever found and, above all, 
a man who has the courage of his convictions. As a pulpit orator he is sur- 
passed by few, always logical, forceful, earnest and often truly eloquent. 
Truly, he is a born leader of men, and as Shakespeare has said, "His life was 
gentle and the elements so mixed in him that the whole world might stand up 
and say, This was a man." 



FRANK JOHNSON. 



Agriculture has been an honored vocation from the earliest ages and as 
a usual thing men of honorable and humane impulses, as well as those of 
energy and thrift, have been patrons of husbandry. The free, out-of-door 
life of the farm has a decided tendency to foster and develop that independence 
of mind and self-reliance which characterizes true manhood and no truer 
blessing can befall a boy than to be reared in close touch with nature in the 
healthful, life-inspiring lal)or of the fields. It has always been the fruitful 
soil from which have sprung the moral bone and sinew of the country, and 
the majority of our nation's great warriors, renowned statesmen and dis- 
tinguished men of letters were born on the farm and were indebted largely 
to its early influence for the distinction which they have attained. 

Frank Johnson, the proprietor of three hundred and twenty acres of 
fine farming land in Franklin township, Hendricks county, Indiana, was born 
in Alorgan county, this state, April 20, 1858. His parents were Wesley and 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 605 

Mary (Garrison) Johnson, his father being a native of North Carolina and his 
mother of Indiana. When Wesley Johnson was about seven years of age he 
came to this county from North Carolina with his father, who entered govern- 
ment land in Morgan county. Wesley Johnson received the very meager 
education which was afforded l:)y the subscription schools of his day and when 
a mere lad started to work on his father's farm, where he learned as a lad 
all those lessons which must be a part of every successful farmer's equipment, 
and his success in after life may be in a large part attributed to the excellent 
teaching received at the hands of his father along agricultural lines. He con- 
tinued on the farm with his father until his marriage, and, in fact, lived all 
of his life on the farm, except one year which he spent in Danville. Mr. and 
Airs. Wesley Johnson were the parents of two children, Frank, the immediate 
subject of this sketch, and Elizabeth, who married Oscar Weasner, and they 
have four children, Lee, Mary, Ina and Willis. 

Frank Johnson was educated in the common schools of Hendricks county 
and during his school days he worked on his father's farm during the sum- 
mer, so that by the time he was twenty-one years of age he had received from 
his father a practical course in agriculture. When he reached his majority 
he married, rented a farm and started in to make his fortune with his good 
wife How well they have succeeded may be seen by the most casual ob- 
server who passes by his spacious residence and notes the broad fields which 
are his today. As a farmer and stock raiser he is the equal of any in this 
county of excellent farmers and his success is due to his persistent and perse- 
vering energy and good judgment in all things which pertain to the agricul- 
tural life. 

Mr. Johnson was married January 20, 1879, to Mary Newman, the 
daughter of Lacy and Maria (Phillips) Newman, and to them have been born 
two children, Luna, who died May 3, 189c), and Clarence, who married Mabel 
Gambold, and they have three children, Allen, Edwin and Helen. Air. John- 
son's wife's parents were both natives of North Carolina, her father having 
come from that state to Indiana when he was eighteen years of age and settled 
with his father upon one hundred and sixty acres of land which he entered 
from the government. Mr. Newman died in 1892, his wife having passed 
away six years previous. Mr. and Mrs. Newman were the parents of six 
children: Laura, who died at the. age of five years: Jane, who married Galen 
Robinson; Mary, the wife of Mr. Johnson; Martha, who married Frank 
Alasten ; George died at the age of seventeen years ; Julia married Harrison 
Shields. 

Mr and Mrs. Johnson are both consistent and loyal members of the 



6o6 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Methodist Episcopal church at Stilesville, in the affairs of which they are much 
interested. Mr. Johnson being a trustee of the church. Mr. Johnson has been 
a stanch Republican for many years and although he takes a deep interest in 
the current questions of the day and political issues of the hour, he has never 
been a seeker for any public office. His extensive farming interests have de- 
manded his time and attention so that he has not felt inclined to bother him- 
self with the question of holding office. Mr. Johnson has a fine residence 
and keeps his farm in a highly cultivated state of improvement at all times. 
He has a reputation for honesty and integrity which has been the direct result 
of his square dealings throughout his long years of residence in this county. 
He is a man who has won the esteem of his fellow men by the daily touch of 
his life. 



CHARLES W. NEAL. 



Among the well known farmers of a past generation who have been 
instrumental in placing Hendricks county in the front ranks of the agricultural 
counties of Indiana, was Charles VV. Neal, who was born in Bourbon county, 
Kentucky, March 29, 1834, and died March 18, 1905, on his farm in Lin- 
coln township, this county. His parents were Nathaniel and Sallie (San- 
dusky) Neal, his mother dying at his birth. She was the daughter of Jacob 
Sandusk}^ of Bourbon county, Kentucky. In the early history of the state 
Jacob Sandusky came to Indiana with twenty thousand dollars in his belt and 
walked around over the central part of the state barefooted and looking like 
a tramp in order to quietly pick out the best lands. He bought eleven hun- 
dred acres where Irvington now stands and four hundred and eighty acres 
two and one-half miles south of Brownsburg, six hundred and forty acres in 
Decatur county, this state, north of Greensburg, eight hundred acres in the 
south edge of Boone county and other lands in the central part of the state. 
However, he did not live on any of these tracts, but continued to reside in 
Kentucky, coming back to Indiana each year to look after his property and 
pay his taxes. 

Charles W. Neal never knew what it was to have a mother's protecting 
care and when he was four years of age he was taken away by relatives on 
horseback to Illinois, where he was kept for six years. He was then taken 
back to Kentucky, but remained there only a short time before he took a yearl- 
ing colt, with a sheepskin for a saddle and a rope bridle, and. fording the Ohio 
river, he returned to his relatives in Illinois. The first pair of shoes the lad 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 607 

had he earned bv driving oxen at ten cents a day. He again returned to Ken- 
tucky and spent the remainder of his boyhood days, and in that state he was 
married, July 4, 1861. to Emma S. Bradley, the second of seven children born 
to Shelton and Mildred (Simpson) Bradley. His wife was born in Bourbon 
county, Kentucky, near Paris. It is interesting to note that both Charles 
Neal and his wife had been reared on farms where slaves did most of the 
work, and that neither of them had learned much of the hard realities of 
life when they were married. From his grandfather, Jacob Sandusky, he 
inherited four hundred acres of land two miles south of Brownsburg in 
Hendricks county, and in 1864 he and his wife came to this county to live. 
The only road to his farm was a blazed trail through the forests, swamps 
and underbrush, and the farm certainly could not have looked very inviting 
to him on the day on which he first saw it, as the land was low, wet, covered 
with a thick mat of underbrush. This was probably one reason why it had 
not been settled sooner. The Civil W^ar had swept away what his family and 
relatives owned in Kentucky and that was one reason why he and his young 
wife decided to come to Indiana. They probably had little notion of the four 
hundred acres which was waiting for them in this county. Neighbors in 
Kentucky prophesied disaster for them in the new country, but Charles and 
his wife were not to be dismayed and with their little children they started 
in with brave hearts to make a living on their farm. For the first five years 
he did little farming, spending most of his time hunting. However, dire 
necessity made him forsake his gun for the hoe and axe, and he gradually 
began clearing his land and dealing in live stock, buying and selling through- 
out the county. He cleared his land, rolled his logs, burned brush just as 
though he had always been used to it, drained his land, improved and fenced 
it, erected buildings and built a house which was one of the best in the county 
at that time. It must be remembered that he had lived in a state where white 
men did little work and where the sla\'es did all of it, and for this reason it 
took some time for him to understand that in Indiana white men did all of the 
work. 

Charles W. Neal was a frank, plain-spoken man, even blunt of speech, 
but he had a host of friends who admired him for his sincerity. He was a 
man all the way through and was respected for his rugged honesty. He died 
in 1905, and his wife on September 27, 1908. Four children were born to 
them : Tavner, whose history is given elsewhere in this volume ; Claudia, the 
wife of Alonzo Turpin; Forest, who is living; Lorenzo, deceased. The chil- 
dren all live in the southern part of Lincoln township, or near the old home 
farm. 



6o8 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

E. W. SAWYER. 

The history of a county or state, as well as that of a nation, is chiefly a 
chronicle of liie lives and deeds of those who have conferred honor and dig- 
nity upon society. The world judges the character of a community by those 
of its representative citizens and yields its tribute of admiration and respect 
to those whose works and actions constitute the record of a community's 
prosperit}' and pride. Among the prominent citizens of Hendricks county 
who are well known because of their success in business affairs and the part 
they have taken in the civic affairs of the locality is he whose name appears 
at the head of this article and who is now the eflicient and popular president 
of the Pittsboro Bank. 

E. W. Sawwer, a business man of thirty years' experience in Pittsboro, 
Hendricks county, Indiana, was born in Sterling, Massachusetts, in 1854. 
He was given an excellent education and completed his schooling b\' gradu- 
ating from the Lancaster Academy. He spent his boyhood and early man- 
hood in the state of Massachusetts, where he operated a news-stand at Leo- 
minster for several years. In iSSi he came to Indiana and settled in Pitts- 
boro, this county, where he worked for Oliver W. Hill in his general store. 
He showed a marked aptitude for business and in 1888 he was able to engage 
m business for himself. His worth as a citizen and the popularity in which 
he was held in his own town is shown by the fact that he was appointed 
postmaster of Pittsboro by President Benjamin Harrison in 1888. In 1895 
he built the Sawyer block in his home town and continued in business for the 
next ten years in this building. In 1909 he was elected president of the Pitts- 
boro Bank and has continued to hold this important office since that time. 
In addition to his mercantile and banking interests he has also been inter- 
ested in agriculture, having bought in 1898 the Samuel Hill farm of one hun- 
dred and forty acres, v^'hich he still owns and manages. He has proven as 
successful in the management of his farm as he did in his mercantile business. 
He is now living retired in Pittsboro, having given up the active management 
of his store and farm. 

Mr. Sawyer was married to Forest Dean Hill in 1884, the daughter of 
Mr. and Mrs. Oliver Hill. He and his wife are members of the Christian 
church in Pittsboro and take a very active interest in the various organizations 
of the church. Mr. Sawyer was elected a deacon and trustee of the church 
in 1905. He has made his way in the business world because he ha.; led a 
straightforward and commendable course in all of his business transactions, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 609 

and has won the admiration of the people of Pittsboro and vicinity because 
he has been a progressive man of affairs. He is a broad-minded and public- 
spirited citizen, who has not been backward in giving his support to every 
movement for the upbuilding and advancement of his conmiunity. Person- 
ally he is a most companionable man and is a popular member of the circles 
in which he moves. 



J. WESLEY AYERS. 



The science of agriculture — for it is a science as well as an art — finds an 
able demonstrator as well as successful practitioner in the person of J. Wes- 
ley Ayers, who is widely known in Hendricks county. Indiana, maintaining 
a. very productive and desirable farm in Franklin townshin. He comes of a 
very highly honored pioneer family, members of which have played well their 
parts in the general development of this favored section of the great Indiana 
commonwealth. 

J. Wesley Ayers, the son of William P. and Mary E. (Bell) Ayers, was 
born in Danville, Indiana, April 4, 1865. His father was a native of Mary- 
land, while his mother was born in this county. William P. Ayers came to 
Indiana from Mar}land with his parents when he was about four years of age. 
He received his education in this county, and after leaving school he worked 
on his father's farm until his marriage, at the age of twenty. To Mr. and 
Mrs. William P. Ayers were born ten children: Laura, the wife of Aaron 
Aldredge; Leander; Alice, who married Bradley Tout and, after his death, 
Henry Roland; Miranda, the wife of Frank Ryland; Dora, who married 
James West; Clara, the wife of Charles Garrison and, after his death, Frank 
Whitlock; Charles, who married Delia Denny; Otis, deceased; Albert, and J. 
Wesley, the immediate subject of this review. 

J. Wesley Ayers secured his education by attending the common and high 
schools of Danville and attended the Central Normal College of Danville, and 
upon the completion of his education he came to Indianapolis, where he was 
in the employ of the Sherman, Occidental and Stubbins hotels as clerk for 
about four years. Upon the death of his father at Danville, he removed to 
the latter place and took up his father's occupation as brick maker and con- 
tractor, and for the succeeding eight years he followed this line of business, 
erecting, among other buildings, the First National Bank building, of Dan- 
ville. He then purchased a farm and began operations as an agriculturist, 
(39) 



6lO HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

securing his first farm of sixty-two acres north of Danville, and he managed 
this place for the next ten years, after which time he sold this tract and bought 
sixty acres two and one-half miles east of Danville. Two years later he sold 
this land and purchased his present farm of sixty acres in Franklin township, 
known as the William Tincher farm, a farm which he has brought to a high 
state of cultivation and made attractive with a good home, outbuildings and 
other extensive improvements. 

Mr. Ayers was married April 2, 1908, to Ambrosia Hurst, the daughter 
of Charles R. and Mary E. (Bence) Hurst, and to this union there has been 
born one child, Mary Elizabeth. Mrs. Ayers' parents were both natives of 
Harrison county, Indiana, and IMrs. Ayers was born in that county. She has 
one brother, John, who married Frankie E. Thomas, and they live near Cory- 
don, Indiana. 

Mr. Ayers has identified himself since his majority with the Republican 
party, but has never been an active participant in the campaigns of his party. 
He is a member of the Knights of Pythias and also of the Sons of Veterans. 
He and his wife are loyal and consistent members of the Methodist Episcopal 
church of Danville, and are liberal contributors to the support of this denom- 
ination. Owing to his genuine worth as a man and his genial disposition, he 
easily wins friends and has always retained them. He enjoys a marked 
degree of popularity in the locality where so many of his active years have 
been spent. 



JESSE MASTEN. 

The student interested in Hendricks county, Indiana, does not have to 
carry his investigation far into its annals before learning that Jesse Masten 
has long been one of the leading and active representatives of its agricultural 
interests and that his labors have proven a potent force in making this a rich 
farming region. Through several decades he has carried on farming, gradu- 
ally improving his valuable place, and while he has prospered in this he has 
also found ample opportunity to assist in the material development of the 
county, and his co-operation has been of value for the general good. 

Jesse Masten, the proprietor of five hundred and fifty-five acres of fine 
farming land in Franklin township, Hendricks county, Indiana, was born in 
this township, February 26, 1847, the son of Reuben and Margaret (Garrison) 
Masten, both of whom were natives of North Carolina. Reuben Masten re- 
ceived his education in that state and after leaving school he worked on his 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



6ll 



father's farm for a few years. After his marriage in North Carolina, he, 
together with his father, moved to Daviess county, Indiana, but remained 
there only a short time. He then came to Hendricks county and entered one 
hundred and sixty acres of land from the government in Franklin township, 
and there he lived the simple, unostentatious life of a farmer and was very 
successful in all his undertakings, having four hundred and seventy acres of 
land at the time of his death, October lo, 1892. Mr. and Mrs. Reuben Masten 
were the parents of eleven children: Hezekiah, who married Ann Jackson: 
John, deceased; Derias, who married Margaret DeMott: Mahala. the wife of 
David Pike, both deceased; Mary, who married Marshall Roberts, deceased: 
Matthias, who married Nancy Elmore; Harry, deceased; Sarah, deceased; 
Ann, deceased, who married L. Buis ; Emmazetti, the wife of John Hodson. 
of Coatesville, Indiana, and Jesse, the immediate subject of this review. 

Jesse Masten received the best education which the country schools of 
Franklin township afforded in the stirring days preceding the Civil War. His 
education was naturally limited because there were no schools which really 
merited the name. After completing his meager educational training, he 
started to work with his father on the home farm. The land which his 
father had entered was a virgin forest, and the sound of the axe and the 
crackle of the burning brush was the finest kind of music to the ears of the 
pioneers of that day. While still a young man he was married to Mary Ellen 
Baird, the daughter of Boles and Emmeline (Coons) Baird, and to this 
union there were born six children : Irene, who married Albert Smith, and 
is the mother of three children. Nina. Carl and Jesse; Ira, who married Ida 
Bowen. and they are the parents of three children, Mabel, Vivian and Mary; 
Maude, who married Frank Powers, and is the mother of two children, 
Lucile and Ralph; Arthur married Elizabeth Powers, and Clyde and Willis, 
who are unmarried and at home. 

Mrs. Masten's parents were both natives of Kentucky and reared a fam- 
ily of eight children: William, who married Katie Starkey; Lucinda. the 
wife of Wesley Richardson; Eliza became the wife of Martin Mason; Bence. 
married Allie Bandy; Mary, wife of Mr. Masten; Frankie married Jacob 
Shoptaugh ; Clay married Eva Marshall ; Charles, deceased. 

Mr. Masten was reared to the life of a farmer and has never seen any 
good reason to forsake that time-honored calling, in which he has met with 
such distinctive success. On his splendid farm of five hundred and fifty-five 
acres in Franklin township he carried on general farming and also gives con- 
siderable attention to the breeding and raising of high grade live stock, having 
found this to be a very valuable and profitable auxiliary to his agricultural 



6t2 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

interests. His farm is well improved in every respect and is a pleasing sight 
to the i)asserhy. 

In politics Mr. Masten is a Progressive, having allied himself with that 
party npon its organization in the fall of 191 2. He and his wife are inter- 
ested in all movements looking toward the welfare of the community in 
which they live, Mrs. Masten being a member of the Missionary Baptist 
church at Coatesville. Mr. Masten is financially interested in the First Na- 
tional Bank at Coatesville and is now vice-president of that institution. 



JOHN A. WEST. 

Among the strong and influential citizens of Hendricks county the 
record of whose lives have become an essential part of the history of this 
section, the gentleman whose name appears above occupies a prominent place 
and for years he has exerted a beneficial influence in the locality where he 
resides. His chief characteristics are keenness of perception, a tireless energy, 
honesty of purpose and motive, and every-day common sense, which have 
enabled him not only to advance his own interests, but also largely contribute 
to the moral and material advancement of the community. 

John A. West, the proprietor of one hundred six and a half acres of land 
in Clay township, Hendricks county, was born March 8, 1867, in the county 
where he has spent his entire life. His father was also a native of this 
county, his birth having occurred near Pecksburg, in 1833, and died in Clay 
township, March 5, 1908. Columbus West, father of the subject, received 
a limited common school education in the schools of his day, and worked on 
his father's farm and in the grist mill and, after his marriage, began farming 
on a forty-acre tract which was given him by his father. He proved to be 
a remarkably successful farmer, and at one time had eight hundred and 
sixty acres of fine land in the county. He married Tabitha Staley, and to 
this union eight children were born: Ellen, deceased; Lucy, the wife of 
George Harvey ; Jane, who married John Baron ; Morton married Effie Walls ; 
George married Alva Walls ; Henry, who first married Albia Harlan and, 
after her death, Mary Bartholomew; Milo, who married Naomi Barow, and 
John A., the immediate subject of this sketch. 

The West family trace their ancestry back to North Carolina, Abra- 
ham West, grandfather of John A., being a native of North Carolina, who 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 613 

came to Hendricks conntv with his parents when he was a small boy. Upon 
reaching" manhood he married Sinia Hadley, and to this union nine chil- 
dren were born: William; Washington, who married Lucinda Staley; Co- 
lumbus, the father of John A. ; Diego, who hrst married Endemile Asher, 
and, after her death, Elizabeth Whicker; Sipio, who married Delia Parker; 
Ellen, deceased; Narcissus, who married Alpeus Harlan; Amanda, the wife 
of Allen Whicker; Malissa, the wife of ^Milton Asher, and who married 
Manly Ji-istice after the death of her first husband. 

John A. West attended the district schools of Clay township, and was 
earlv initiated into all the mysteries of agriculture by his practical father. 
Upon becoming of age his father gave him a farm and he immediately de- 
cided to provide a helpmate for himself. Accordingly he was married to 
Ada B. Harrison, the daughter of William and Eliza (Bartholomew) Har- 
rison, and through the many years during which they have walked together 
theirs has been truly a happy marriage. His wife's father was a native of 
Hendricks county, and followed the occupation of a farmer all his life. His 
wife, Eliza Bartholomew, was the daughter of Benjamin and Sabina (John- 
son) Bartholomew, and to them were born five children, Iva, Oscar, Ada 
(the wife of j\Ir. West), Benjamin and \\^ilma. Iva married Luther Trester; 
Oscar married Xettie Rushton; Benjamin died when small and Wilma is 
still u.nmarried. William Harrison was born in 1834 and died in 1873. 
His wife was born in 1837, and her death occurred September 2;^, 1913- 
Thomas Harrison, the father of William Harrison, was a native of Ken- 
tucky, and later moved to Tennessee, from which state he moved to Hen- 
dricks county. Indiana, early after his marriage. He was married to X^ancv 
Bryan, and to tliis union six children were born : John, who married Mar- 
garet Clark; Martha, the wife of Reuben P. Wall; \^^illiam, who married 
Eliza Bartholomew; James and Nathan died when young; Thomas died in 
1853 the grandmother surviving nearly a half century afterwards, passing 
away in 1899. 

Mr. West has always cast his ballot for the Republican party, because 
he felt that in this party were the leaders who were well qualified to direct 
the destinies of the nation. In his fraternal relations he is identified with 
the Independent Order of Odd Eellows, while, religiously, he is a loyal and 
consistent member of the Baptist church at Amo. He has always taken a 
keen interest in the various movements of his locality which were organized 
for the purpose of civic or intellectual betterment, and has alwavs been a 
sympathetic helper in all such movements. His clean life and integrity of 



6l4 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

hif^h rank have won for him the approbation of a large number of friends 
throughout his home township. Mr. and Mrs. West have an adopted daugh- 
ter, Carrie Trester, born February 2, 1893. 



JAMES MONTGOMERY. 

One of the sturdy pioneers of Hendricks county who has Hved within its 
borders for more than three score and ten years is James Montgomery. 
His family were among the very first people in the county and during the 
whole history of the county the Montgomerys have been important factors 
in the material advancement of the county. They have seen the wilderness 
and swamps give way to broad, cultivated fields and flourishing towns and 
villages, and in all this change they have borne an honorable part. 

James Montgomery, the son of George and Nancy (Sturman) Mont- 
gomery, was born near Plainfield, Hendricks county, in 1841 and has spent 
his whole life in this county. When he was two years of age his father 
moved from Plainfield to Marion township and in this township James Mont- 
gomery has lived since that time. He was given the best education afforded 
by the subscription schools of his time and at an early age began to assist 
his father upon the farm. He remained at home until his marriage, at the 
age of twenty-one, when he started out for himself on a farm adjoining his 
father's, and remained on the same farm until he retired from active life. 

Mr. Montgomery was married in 1862 to Margaret Tharp, the daughter 
of James and Mary Tharp. A history of the Tharp family is given in the 
life of Joshua Tharp which is delineated elsewhere in this volume. To this 
first marriage there were born three children : George B. McClellan, who 
married Catherine Riggles, and has six children, Gertrude, Homer, Era, 
Harley, Lantus and Mary. George is now farming one mile west of New 
Winchester, but was formerly a merchant at Hadley and New Winchester. 
Louise Catherine, the second child of Mr. Montgomery, was the wife of 
John Neville, and died in November, 1900, leaving one daughter, Nellie. 
Nellie is the wife of Urban Olsen, of Pittsboro, and has one daughter, 
Louetta. The youngest child of Mr. Montgomery by his first marriage is 
Erasmus, who married Addie Patterson and has four children, Herschel, 
Lawrence, Clarence and Mabel. Erasmus is a farmer and lives in Union 
township near Montclair. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 615 

The first wife of Mr. Montgomery and the mother of the three children 
above mentioned died in 1869, and on November 17, 1870, Mr. Montgomery 
married Sarah Baker, the daughter of Jesse and Margaret (Clark) Baker. She 
was born in Putnam county in 1853. Her father was born near Lexington, 
Kentucky, the son of Andrew and Martha (Griggs) Baker, was reared in 
his native state, married Margaret Clark, of the same state, in 1852. and im- 
mediately brought his young bride to Hendricks county. In the following 
year they moved to Putnam, but in a short time came back to Hendricks 
county. For fourteen years he was assessor in this county and then, after 
moving back to Putnam county, he was an assessor in that county for five 
years. He was also deputy assessor for a number of years under others who 
did not understand the work. He was regarded as the most expert man in 
this line of business that either county ever had. He was a Democrat and, 
with his wife, an attendant of the Regular Baptist church. He died February 
22., 1909. 

By the second marriage there were four children, Nancy Jane, Oscar, 
Florence May and Charles Harlan. Nancy Jane was born June 17, 1872, 
and died June 18, 1890. Oscar was born April 14, 1878, and was married 
April 20, 1898, to Sallie Lane, the daughter of Thompson and Josephine 
(Creech) Lane. She was born in Tennessee and came to Hendricks county 
with her parents when she was five years old. They lived at North Salem 
until 1910 when they moved to a farm near Danville, where they now reside. 
Oscar and his wife have three children, Mabel, Gladys, Mary Blanche and 
Walter Raymond. Florence May has been married twice, her first husband 
being Otha Sheets, and to this union there was born one daughter, Anna 
Mae; the second marriage of Florence May was to Thomas Cox and to this 
union there have been born two sons, Roy Harlan and James DeWayne. Mr. 
and Mrs. Cox live in Indianapolis at the present time. Charles Harlan, born 
September 25, 1885, the youngest child of Mr. and Mrs. Montgomery, lives 
at New Castle where he manages a sales stable. He married Hallie Peyton 
and has one son, Donald Edwin. 

James Montgomery began manufacturing tile about 1884 near his home 
and continued in that business along with his farming for eight years. ]\Ir. 
and Mrs. Montgomery are both members of the Regular Baptist church and 
are interested in all the activities of their denomination. Mr. Montgomery 
is a genial and unassuming man whose friends are numbered by his ac- 
quaintances. 



6l6 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

COL. GEORGE C. HARVEY. 

George C. Harvey, a prominent lawyer of Danville, was born on August 
9, i860, on a farm near Rockville, P'arke county, Indiana, the son of George 
C. and Martha Ann (Thompson) Harvey, his father also being a native of 
Parke county, and his mother of Kentucky. His mother was the daughter of 
James L. Thompson, a very prominent Methodist minister and author of a 
volume of sermons. His father was a young farmer at the opening of the 
Civil \Var and enlisted for service on September 15, 1861, in Company I. 
Thirty-first Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry. He was mustered in as 
captain and participated in the battles of Fort Henry and Donelson in the 
spring of 1862 and was killed on the first day of the battle of Shiloh, April 
6, 1862. His mother was left with three small children and reared them to 
lives of usefulness and honor. She never remarried and is still living in 
Danville at the age of seventy-six. These children were James H., of Yazoo 
City, Mississippi ; Mrs. Mary T. Hadley, the widow of Otis C. Hadley, who 
is now a teacher of art in the public schools of Lebanon, Indiana. For a 
number of years she was at the head of the art department in the Danville 
schools, and also the Central Normal College. She teaches for the love of 
art and cares nothing for the financial side of the profession. The third 
child is George C. Llarvey, the immediate subject of this sketch, who was 
only about one year old when his father was killed in battle. 

Col. George C. Harvey was born in a log house which is still standing 
in Parke county about half way between Rockville and Bloomingdale. After 
his father's death in the Civil War, his mother, Avith her three children, moved 
to Attica, where they lived for a few years. Later they moved to Rockville, 
where they lived vmtil 1875, when they came to Hendricks county. George 
C. Harvey then went on the farm of his guardian and remained there until 
the fall of 1879, when he entered Wabash College and completed the four- 
years course. He worked his way through college by putting in crops in the 
summer time and doing railroad contract work and. in fact, anything he 
could find to do. He at times worked in the auditor's ofiice at Danville in 
order to make a little money to continue his course in college. While his 
vacation periods were as busy as they could possibly have been, he was not 
less employed while in school. In addition to carrying full college work and 
doing chores on the side, he read a great deal of law in the offices at 
Crawfordsville. In the summer of 1883, upon his graduation, he went into 
the office of Thaddeus S. Adams, of Danville, and continued with him until 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 617 

the spring of 18S7. but not as a partner. He was admitted to the bar in 1884, 
but had been deputy prosecuting attorney before that time in the justice of 
peace court, and might have been admitted to the bar before 1884, but he did 
not care for his admission until he had had a case in the circuit court. In 
July, 1887, he formed a partnership with George W. Brill, the present judge 
of Hendricks county, and this partnership continued until Judge Brill was 
elected in 1912. Colonel Harvey has won an enviable name for himself in 
court and is known throughout the central part of Indiana as one of the best 
jury lawyers. He has had more than thirty murder cases in court, and has 
had a very large share of success in the general practice of Hendricks county. 
Recognizing his keen ability as a lawyer and as an analytical student of the 
law, corporations have frequently engaged him as counsel, and he has always 
been able to give good service to his clients. 

Colonel Harvey was married November 8, 1887, ^^ Flemingsburg, Ken- 
tucky, to Lillian D. Drenan, the daughter of James P. and Mahala Drenan, 
of that city. To this union there have been born four children, Drenan R., 
born April 6, 1889, ^^ho is now practicing law with his father; George R., 
born August 17, 1890, who is also associated with his father in the practice 
of law; Martha A., born April 22, 1895, ^^""^ John Parke, born June 10, 1902. 
Mr. and Mrs. Harvey are justly proud of their four children, and they have 
given them every educational advantage possible in order that they might 
be the best equipped for their future careers. It is a satisfaction to the par- 
ents to know that their children have fulfilled their expectations in every way 
and are in a fair way to make themselves recognized factors in the community 
in the future. 

Colonel Harvey was elected clerk of the city of Danville on four different 
occasions, a fact which attests his popularity in his home town. He was a 
member of the military staff of Governor Chase, and also of Governor 
Matthews with the rank of colonel. He has also been chief inspector of the 
infantry of the state. In 1890 he was elected colonel of the Sons of Veterans 
of the state of Indiana, and since that time has held the office of judge advo- 
cate general of the Sons of \^eterans of the United States. He is a member 
of the Loyal Legion, the Free and Accepted Masons, both of the chapter and 
council, and while in college was a member of the Phi Kappa Psi Greek- 
letter fraternity. In his political relations he is a member of the Republican 
party and saw no reason in the fall of 19 12 why he should sever his connec- 
tion with that old and established party. Colonel Harvey is vice-president 
of the Klondike Milling Company, of Danville, and is financially interested 
in that company. He is one of the directors of the Columbia Club of Indi- 



6l8 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

anapolis and a stockholder in the same. Colonel Harvey has been a promi- 
nent figure in Hendricks county for many years and is still regarded as one 
of the best men of the Hendricks county bar. As he approaches the fall of 
life he will have the satisfaction of letting his mantle rest upon the shoulders 
of his two worthy sons, who are fast qualifying themselves to take up the 
work which their father has so well done in the past. 



WILLIAM HUNT. 



Hendricks county, Indiana, enjoys a high reputation because of the high 
order of her citizenship, and none of her citizens occupies a more enviable posi- 
tion in the esteem of his fellows than the gentleman whose name appears at the 
head of this sketch. A residence here of nearly seventy years has given his 
fellows a full opportunity to o1)serve him in the various lines of activity in 
which he has engaged and his present high standing is due solely to the 
honorable and upright course he has pursued. As a leading citizen of his 
community he is eminently entitled to representation in a work of this char- 
acter. 

William Hunt, a gallant veteran of the Civil War and a prosperous 
farmer of this county, was born in Clay township, July 31, 1845, ^"<^1 has 
spent his three score and ten years in the county of his nativity. His parents 
were Albert and Lucinda (Hayworth) Hunt, his father being a native of 
North Carolina and his mother of Virginia. Albert Hunt came to this 
state when a small boy with his parents and located in Clay township, this 
county, where his father became one of the heaviest land owners of the 
county, having six hundred and forty acres of land at the time of his death, 
July 24, 1856. Albert Hunt was born August 10, 1818, and his wife, Lu- 
cinda Hayworth, was born February iS, 1821. They were married August 
10, 1841, and to this union five children were born: Ira, who was killed 
in the battle of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863, was a member of Company I, 
Twenty-seventh Regiment Indiana A^jlunteer Infantry; Rachel died in child- 
hood; David married Melissa Hunt and has five children, Frank, Ira, Ida, 
Steven and Harry; David died September 3, 1900; Beulah died when young; 
William, the immediate subject of this sketch, was the third in order of 
birth of the five children born to his parents. 

William Hunt was educated in the district schools of his home town- 
ship, and since he was only sixteen years old when the Civil War broke out, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. biQ 

he was not old enough for service. However, as soon as he reached the age 
of eighteen he enhsted in Company B, One Hundred Seventeenth Regiment 
Indiana Vokmteer Infantry, and served for about eight months. At the 
close of his service he returned to his home county and worked at farm labor 
in his home township for about two years. He then married and went on 
to a farm of fifty-two acres, which he had inherited, and here he continued to 
reside for the next twenty years. He then moved to Amo in his home town- 
ship, where he lived for the next fourteen years, at the expiration of which 
time he bought the farm of ninety-five acres on which he is living at the 
present time. 

William Hunt was married September 7, 1869, to Sarah E. Benbow, 
the daughter of Elam and Anna (Harley) Benbow, and to this union there 
has been born one child, Ettie, who married William E. Christie, and is the 
mother of four children, Iso, Blanche, Hubert and Christine. Iso married 
Stanley Hadley and has one child. J. Edward. Mrs. Hunt's father was a native 
of North Carolina, and her mother of Virginia. Elam Benbow came to Hen- 
dricks county about 1826 with his parents, who settled west of Amo, and he 
remained on the same farm until his death in 1892. His wife died in 1852, 
leaving a family of five children: Harvey, who married Louisa Atkins; 
Thirza. the wife of Woolson Bryant; Nancy J., the wife of Eli Duffey ; Sarah 
E., wife of Mr. Hunt; Rhoda, the wife of George W. Tincher. The maternal 
grandparents of Mr. Hunt were Asher and Rachel (Johnson) Hunt. They 
reared a family of seven children: Elizabeth, wife of Ira Carter; Caleb, who 
married Mary Dickson; Eletha. the wife of Aaron Benbow; Albert, father 
of the immediate subject of this sketch; Margaret, wife of Mordecai Carter; 
Cynthia, \vife of Newby Hodson ; Beulah, who married Newton Carter, and 
Elmina, the wife of Jay Kersey. 

Mr. Hunt's wife died March 14, 1907, since which time he has been 
making his home with his children. He has been a life-long Republican, 
and his party recognized his sterling worth by electing him as township 
trustee for a term of six years. Religiously, he is affiliated with the Friends 
church, and has been an overseer in this denomination for the past twenty 
years. He is a member of the Grand x\rmy of the Republic, and is one of 
the most active members of the post at Amo. William Hunt has spent a 
busy and useful life and now, in the declining years of his career, he can 
look back over a life which has been one of usefulness to his fellowmen, and 
his career during the long years of his residence in this locality has won 
for him a host of warm friends. 



620 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

GUY HARLAN. 

One of the best known and enterprising of the younger agriculturists 
of Hendricks county is Guy Harlan, now in the very prime of life and use- 
fulness, and his influence as an honorable, upright citizen is productive of 
much good upon all with whom he comes in contact. His past success gives 
assurance of something yet to come, and he is evidently destined to continue 
a potent factor for substantial good for many years to come. He lives on a 
fine farm in Franklin township, this county, which he conducts in a manner 
that stamps him as fully abreast of the times. 

Guy Harlan, the son of Smith and Barbara (Masten) Harlan, was born 
in Franklin township, Hendricks county, Indiana, June 24, 1885. Both of 
his parents were also natives of Hendricks county, his father having fol- 
lowed the occupation of a farmer all of his life until his retirement in 191 3, 
when he moved to Indianapolis. To Mr. and Mrs. Smith Harlan were born 
four children: Harry, who married Daisy Quirk; Londa married Sylvia 
Hurst, Carey, unmarried, and Guy, the immediate subject of this review. 
The paternal grandparents of Guy Harlan were Jesse and Elizabeth (Boar- 
ders) Harlan, and to them was born one son. Smith, the father of the sub- 
ject. 

Guy Harlan spent his boyhood in the manner of lads who are reared on 
the farm, attending the district schools of his neighborhood in the winter 
months and working on his father's farm during the summer. After finish- 
ing the course in the schools of Amo, Indiana, he worked as a lineman for 
the Big Four and the Terre Haute & Eastern Railway Company^ for three 
years He then began farming as a hired hand and worked for various 
farmers in his home locality until ]\Iarch, 1913, when he moved on to his 
father's farm. He is now improving this farm and bringing it to a good 
state of cultivation. He has started a system of crop rotation which will 
increase the productivity of the soil, and in the short time in which he has 
had liie management of the farm he has shown that he will be a successful 
farmer in the future. 

My. Harlan w^as married October 3, 1908, to Ella Underwood, the daugh- 
ter of George and Nancy (Scott) Underwood. His wife's parents were 
natives of Kentucky and w^ere married in that state, living there until 1902, 
when they located south of Clayton. Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. Underwood 
were the parents of nine children: Ro.sa, the wife of George Bennett; Mary, 
deceased; James, deceased; Georgia, the wife of David Dispain; Maria, the 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 62 1 

wife of Joseph Ratliff; Mattie, who married John Van Cleave; William, 
who married Emma Scraggs; Ella, wife of Mr. Harlan; Emma, wife of 
Isaac Plendren. Mrs. Harlan's grandparents were Isaac and Maria (Drnin) 
Underwood, and to them were born the following children : Nancy, Hiram, 
Thomas, Sallie, Ulysses, William, Martha and George. 

Mr. Harlan is a Socialist in politics, because he believes that the unrest 
and distress in this coimtry is due to the unjust advantage which is taken 
of the laboring class by the capitalists of the country. He feels that in the 
tenets of the Socialist party there are the principles which, if judiciously 
applied, will alleviate much of the suffering in this country. Owing to the 
fact that his party is in a minority in his home county, he has never had 
any opj^ortunity to hold public office, and, in fact, never expects to. He 
is a member of the Improved Order of Red Men and the Knights of Pythias, 
and takes an active interest in the workings of these fraternal organizations. 
Mr. Harlan is a man who has worked for what he has and knows how to 
sympathize with the laboring man. He is a man of such genial disposition 
that his friends are as numerous as his acquaintances. By his upright manner 
of living he has justly won the esteem of all of those with whom he is as- 
sociated. 



AMOS KERSEY. 



The Union soldier during the great war between the states builded 
better than he knew. Through four years of suffering and wasting hard- 
ships, through the horrors of prison pens and amid the shadows of death, 
he laid the superstructure of the greatest temple ever erected and dedicated 
to human freedom. The world looked on and called those soldiers sublime, 
for it was theirs to reach out the mighty arm of power and strike the chains 
from off the slaves, preserve the country from dissolution, and to keep furled 
to the breeze the only flag that ever made tyrants tremble and whose majestic 
stripes and scintillating stars are still waving universal liberty to all the earth. 
For all their unmeasured deeds the living present can never repa^' them. 
Pensions and political power may be thrown at their feet ; art and sculp- 
ture may preserve upon canvas and in granite and bronze their unselfish 
deeds, history may commit to books and cold type may give to the future the 
tale of their sufferings and triumphs ; but to the children of the generations 
yet unborn will it remain to accord the full measure of appreciation and un- 
dying remembrances of the immortal character carved out by the American 



622 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

soldiers in the dark days of the early sixties, numbered among whom is 
the gentleman whose name appears at the head of this sketch. 

Amos Kersey, the owner and proprietor of three hundred and forty 
acres of land in Clay township, this county, was born October lo, 1843, in 
the township where he has lived all his life. His parents were James and 
Elizabeth (Hodson) Kersey, both of whom were natives of North Carolina, 
his father being born in that state on February 22, 1801. James Kersey 
was educated and married in North Carolina, coming to Indiana about 1830. 
He and his wife first located in Wayne county, this state, and in 1832 James 
came to Hendricks county and located in Clay township, where he entered three 
hundred and twenty acres of land from the government. Shortly after com- 
ing to this county he took up the study of medicine and studied under Doc- 
tor Parker, of Winchester, Indiana. After completing his course he prac- 
ticed his profession in this county until his death, in 1883. To Dr. James C. 
and Elizabeth Kersey were born nine children ; Jesse, who died at the age of 
nineteen; Abigail, the wife of Peter Elliott; James, deceased, who married 
Elmina Plunt, also now deceased; Rachel, deceased; Mary, who became the 
wife of Abraham Williamson; Isaac, who married Cassie Storms; Jonathan, 
who married Anna Jane Benbow, and, after her death, Addie Cressin; Ezra 
was killed in the Civil War, and Amos, the immediate subject of this sketch. 

Amos Kersey was educated in the common schools of his home township 
and worked on his father's farm until the opening of the Civil War. He then 
enlisted in Company I, Twenty-seventh Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infan- 
try, and served a little more than three years. His regiment was trans- 
ferred to the Army of the Potomac and participated in the first and second 
battles of Bull Run, Winchester, Antietam and in the three-day struggle 
at Gettysburg in July, 1863. His regiment was then transferred to Sher- 
man's army and he made the famous march to the sea through the state of 
Georgia and participated in all the battles of the famous Atlanta campaign. 
Upon returning from the war he engaged in farming with his father and 
continued in partnership with him until the latter's death, in 1883. He then 
bought two hundred and ten acres of his father's farm and began to build 
up a landed estate of his own. He has added to his possessions from time 
to time until he now has three hundred and forty acres of land in this town- 
ship. 

Mr. Kersey was married on September 24, 1867, to Mary Catherine Cas- 
sity. the daughter of Lewis Clements and Ann Jane (Knetzer) Cassity, and 
to this marriage there have been born eight children: Ann Jane, the wife 
of William Powers, of Plainfield, who has four children, Ernest Gladys, Hor- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 623 

ace, and one who died in infancy; Ernest married Eunice Montgomery and 
has two children, Kathleen and Beryl; David is unmarried and living in the 
West; Ezra is unmarried and is still at home; Clarence married Florence 
Hodson and has four children, Gladys, Theodore, Virgil and Lucile; Eva 
married Claude Henderson and has four children. Hazel, Cecil, Clyde and 
Carroll ; Charles married Menti Seckman, and they have two children, Naomi 
and Edna; Carrie married Arthur Brooks; Mary is unmarried and still at 
home. The Cassity family is of Irish descent. Lewis Clements Cassity was 
born near Owensville, Alontgomery county, Kentucky, on October 31, 1822, 
and died at North Salem, Indiana, in April. 1905. He was the son of David 
Cassity, whose father emigrated with Daniel Boone from Virginia to Ken- 
tucky, where he reared his family. He married Polly Clements and their seven 
children were Lewis C. Levi, Elizabeth, Emma. Mary and two who died in 
infancy. Polly Clements Cassity was the daughter of Roger and Hannah 
Clements, of Bourbon county. Kentucky. Roger Clements was a large slave- 
holder, and at his death all but four of the slaves were dispersed with, the 
widow bringing two of them to Indiana. She settled in Boone county, near 
her two sons, Phillip and John, where she died. Grandmother Cassity also 
brought two of the slaves to Indiana. Lewis C. Cassity's maternal grand- 
mother was a Hathaway. In 1834 David Cassity came to Indiana, locating 
in Putnam county, three miles southeast of Bainbridge. Lewis C. Cassity 
was brought to Putnam county. Indiana, in childhood, and was there reared 
and married. His wife, x^nn Jane Knetzer, was born in Mason county, 
Kentucky, in 1827. Her paternal great-grandparents were natives of Ger- 
many, who, upon their emigration to America, first settled in A^irginia for 
a short time, and there was born Charles Knetzer, Mrs. Kersey's grandfather. 
Later the family moved to Kentucky, where the parents died on the same day 
from cholera. Charles Knetzer, who was born on August 18, 1793, married, 
in Kentucky on September 23, 18 19, Catherine Gill, of German descent, who 
was born June 23. 1804, and died January 9, 1879. The latter's mother, 
who was of Welsh stock, bore the family name of Moss, her grandparents 
having settled on what was known as the Lockridge farm near Greencastle. 
Indiana. Their daughter, Lydia Ann ^loss Bradley, died at Peoria. Illinois, 
about ten years ago, at the age of ninety-four years, leaving an estate valued 
at four million dollars, which she willed to the city. Catherine Gill's parents 
remained in Kentucky, where they owned slaves, and upon their deaths, their 
children all came to Indiana excepting a son and a daughter who remained 
at the old homestead, retaining their slaves until emancipation. 

To Lewis C. and Ann Jane Cassity were born five children : Marv Cath- 



624 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

erine. the wife of Amos Kersey; David, deceased; Andrew, who married 
]\Iar§aret Snyder; one who died in infancy and Levi, of Montana. The 
mother of these children (h'ed in April, 1858, and Mr. Cassity 'afterwards 
married Pauline M. McCoy, the daughter of George and Julia (Raglan) Mc- 
Coy, who were natives of Kentucky, but married in Indiana. To this second 
marriage thirteen cliildren were born: Armilda, the wife of William Weller, 
died in May, 1878, about seven months after lier marriage, her husband 
being now deceased; Cyrilda, the wife of James Johnson; Lodusky, who be- 
came the wife of Walter Pugh; Lucretia, the wife of William Robinson, 
who died and she afterwards married Andrew Bales; Emma, the wife of 
James Owen; Jacob; Cassie, who married James Horton; Lewis; Albert M. ; 
Otho, who died at the age of two years ; Oscar, who married Miss Robinson ; 
Ambrose, who married Miss Aggers. 

Mr. Kersey has been a Republican through all his voting years, but 
has never been a partisan in the strict sense of that word. He is a member of 
the Grand Army of the Republic, and is a birthright member of the Friends 
church and has always been active in church affairs. His wife holds mem- 
bership in the Christian church of Winchester, Indiana. Mr. Kersey has 
been a hardworking man all of his life and now, in the twilight of his career, 
he can look back over a life well spent in the service of his fellow men. He 
has ever been ready to lend his influence to all worthy movements and by so 
doing he has won a large number of friends throughout the county where 
he has spent his three score and ten years. 



JOHN C. WALKER. 



Though he whose name stands at the head of this review has passed 
from the life militant to the life triumphant, he will for many years to come 
be favorably remembered by the residents of Clayton, Hendricks county, 
Indiana, and in fact by many throughout the county and in an even yet larger 
field. Because of his many excellent personal ((ualities and the splendid and 
definite influence which his life shed over the entire locality in which he lived 
so long and which he labored so earnestly to upl)uil(l in any way within his 
power, it is particularly fitting that specific mention should be made of him 
in a work containing mention of the representative citizens of the community 
in which he lived and labored so long. A man of high moral character, 
unimpeachal)le integrity, persistent industry and excellent business judgment. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 625 

he stood "four score to every wind that blew" and throughout his wide circle 
of friends and acquaintances he was universally admired and esteemed. 

John Columbus Walker was a native of this county, having been born 
near J3elleville on February 22, 1847, ^n<^l he departed this life at his home 
in Clayton on October 29, 19 13, aged sixty-six years and eight months. He 
was left an orphan in early childhood and was reared by an uncle who lived 
in Liberty township, this county. Robert Walker, the uncle, saw that he re- 
ceived a good education, and in early youth he attended the Belleville schools, 
later finishing at what was known as the Belleville Academy. When only a 
little over fourteen years of age, with his boyish soul on fire for humanity 
and love of country, he heard the call to arms and on April 24, 1861, he was 
entered in the nation's ranks as a private in Company A, Seventh Indiana 
^^olunteer Infantry. On August 2, 1861, his term having expired, he was 
mustered out of service, but he could not be content to remain at home with 
the wrong still unrighted, so he again enlisted on June 18, 1862, this time as a 
member of Company H, Fifty-fourth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, 
and remained at the front until the expiration of his term of enlistment, 
which was the following September. He again returned home, but again 
becoming dissatisfied with his idleness, once more joined the forces of the 
nation's patriotic sons, this time as a member of Company A, One Hundred 
and Seventeenth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry. This was on July 
22, 1863, and he remained in service until February 24, 1864, when he was 
mustered out. This time he remained at home something over a year, but, 
the nation still being engaged in conflict, he feh his duty strong once more and 
aL'-ain donned the blue and was enrolled as a private in Company K, One 
Hundred and Forty-eighth Regiment, on March 15, 1865, remaining in 
service until he received his honorable discharge on September 5, 1865. the 
great war having ended in the meantime. All this he went through before 
he reached his majority and upon his return home he proceeded to lay the 
foundation which later proved his right to be considered one of the very fore- 
most agriculturists of the county. He began in an humble way as a farm 
laborer, then became a renter and in due time made his first modest purchase 
of land, which served as the nucleus of his excellent farm of six hundred 
acres, all in exceptionally good state of cultivation and, in addition to his 
own holdings, he was caring for one hundred and sixty acres of the Miles 
estate at the time of his death. He owed his success in life solely to his own 
efforts, possessing indomitable will and energy, unlimited perseverance and 
a hio-h desree of business abilitv, which, combined with correct principles of 
(40) 



626 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

life, wrought most excellent results. His home was located about two miles 
south of Clayton on tiie national road and was a commodious ten-room brick 
house, most beautifully located. He took up his residence there in 1870 and 
remained there until the fall of 1908, when he purchased a large and modern 
home in Clayton, where he passed the remainder of his life. 

Mr. Walker was twice married, his first wife being Martha Ann Miles, 
with whom he was united in marriage on October 20, 1870. This union was 
without issue, and in 1874 Mr. and Mrs. Walker adopted a little daughter, 
who is now Mrs. Florence Bray, of Indianapolis, and with her three sons 
cherishes most happy memories of a kind father. Mrs. Walker departed 
this life on December 22, 1891, and on March 5, 1896, Mr. Walker was again 
married, his bride being Jeanetta S. Mays, who was born in Center Valley, 
four or five miles south of Clayton, being a daughter of Stephen R. and Mary 
Frances (Tate) Mays. Both Mr. and Mrs. Mays were born and raised in 
Orange county, North Carolina, near Hillsboro, where his birth occurred in 
1834 and hers in 1838. They were married in their childhood home on De- 
cember 30, 1852, and in 1859 they came to the Hoosier state, locating near 
Center Valley. Mr. Mays was a blacksmith, which trade he followed, and in 
addition to this was a considerable dealer in horses and other live stock. 
Both he and his wife were devout members of the Methodist Episcopal church 
and his fraternal affiliation was with the Free and Accepted Masons, of 
which order he became a member in 1863. Mr. Mays departed this life on 
December 10, 1906, and he met death with the high courage of a true 
Christian. Mrs. Mays' death occurred on July 24, 19 13, at the advanced age 
of seventy-five years. Her life was guided by her faith and under all cir- 
cumstances, whether pleasant or otherwise, her countenance ever exhibited 
her sweet spirit of hopefulness and resignation and her peace with God and 
the world. Mrs. Walker was but six years old when her parents brought 
her to Belleville and she attended the schools of the village during her girl- 
hood, later finishing at the academy. To Mr. and Mrs. W^alker were born 
two children. The eldest was a little daughter, Helen M., who passed away 
when a babe of but six months. She was born on July 14, 1897. Edward 
Raymond, the son, was born December 19, 1903, and is a bright and promis- 
ing boy. 

Mr. Walker's political sympathies were with the Republican party and he 
was ever active in local politics. During the fall of 1867, while a religious 
revival was in progress at the Baptist church of Belleville, he was brought 
under personal conviction and made his peace with God, but for many years 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 627 

failed to unite with any church society, while living the life of a consistent 
Christian and assisting in the material support of different church societies. 
However, in June, 1913, he united with the Clayton Presbyterian church, 
of which his wife and son are also members.' Mr. Walker's fraternal affilia- 
tion was with the ancient order of Freemasonry, being a member of Lodge 
No. 463 at Clayton. He received the thirty-second, or Scottish Rite, degree 
at Indianapolis in 1911 and also at that time became a Noble of the Mystic 

Shrine. 

Mr. Walker was a man among men, ever ready to assist all who were 
doing all in their power to assist themselves. He was averse to doing kind 
deeds that the public might know of, and doubtless many are the benevolent 
acts placed to his credit of wdiich the w^orld knew nothing. He was a man 
of good business judgment and executive ability, and spurned taking advan- 
tage of his fellow men in any way, believing always that a square deal was 
the only course. In all the elements of manhood and good citizenship, Mr. 
Walker was all that a man should be and the enviable place which he held 
in the hearts of a wnde circle of friends and acquaintances was but a fitting 
tribute to one eminently deserving. 



FRED G. SHIRLEY. 



It is a well authenticated fact that success comes as the result of legit- 
imate and well applied energy, unflagging determination and perseverance 
in a course of action when once decided upon. She is never known to 
smile upon the idler or dreamer and she never courts the loafer, only the 
men who have diligently sought her favor being crowned with her blessings. 
In tracing the history of the influential farmer and representative citizen of 
Clay towaiship, Hendricks county, Indiana, w^hose name forms the caption 
of this review, it is plainly seen that the prosperity which he enjoys has been 
won by commendable qualities and it is also his personal worth that has 
gained for him the high esteem of those who know him. 

Fred G. Shirley, the proprietor of one hundred and twenty acres of 
fine land in Clay township, this county, was born on the farm where he is 
now living February 2, 1873. His parents were William R. and Sallie M. 
(Phiflips) Shirley, his father being a native of this county, born in 1845, 
and his mother also a native of Hendricks county, her birth having occurred 
in about 1855. William R. Shirley received a good common school educa- 



628 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

tion and when a young man engaged in the general merchandising Iju.-^iness 
at Pecksbiirg. Clay township, in connection with his father. He continued 
with his father in the store until his marriage, and shortly afterwards he 
bought forty acres, part of this" land being included in the farm of Fred G. 
Shirley. He ccjntinucd to reside on this farm until about 1900, when he 
retired from active farm life and moved to Danville, where he remained until 
his death, August 4, 1902, his wife having preceded him in death some years 
previous in 1898. Sallie M. Phillips, wife of William R. Shirley, was the 
slaughter of Samuel and Rachel (Newman) Phillips. Mr. and Airs. William 
R. Shirley were the parents of four children: Etta L., who married Wilson 
J. Shaw, of Danville, and they are the parents of five children, Erver, Ina, 
Alerrill, Ralph and Phillip; Fred G., the immediate subject of this sketch; 
Alva R., who married Elizabeth Hadley and has one child, Mildred, and one 
who died in infancy. 

Mr. Shirley attended . chool for two years in the village of Pecksburg 
and completed his common school education in tlie Dover school house in 
Lil)ertv townshi]). After finishing the common school course he entered the 
Central Normal College at Danville, where he made a very satisfactory 
record as a student. Upon the completion of his educational training he 
returned to his home and worked with his father until his marriage, which 
occurred on March 16, 1898, to Elnora Hadley, the daughter of Mathias 
and Matilda (Bringle) Hadley, and to this union there have been born 
three children, Wendell, Lois and Geneva. Mathias Hadley was a native of 
Hendricks county, Indiana, and to him and his wife, who was the daughter 
of Solomon and Cynthia (Suits) Bringle, there were born eleven children, 
two of whom died in infancy. The other nine lived to maturity and all 
of them married: Leora, married James Harvey; Alzora became the wife 
of Dr. William Marshburn ; Loretta married Perry Hunt ; Orlando married 
Eva Dickerson; Ozella married Miles Furnas; Orien married Mary Stanley; 
Ozro married Rossilee Garrison; Orvis married Catharine Cbsner; Elnora 
married Fred G. Shirley. Mrs. Hadley died in 1894. and her husband the 
year following. John Hadley, Mrs. Shirley's paternal grandfather, was a. 
native of North Carolina, and married Elizabeth Johnson, who also was born 
in that state. They reared a very large family of children. 

Mr. Shirley allied himself with the new Progressive party in the fall 
of 1912, because he felt that this new party had a platform which, if properly 
carried out, would redown to the welfare of the country at large. In his 
religious affiliations he has l)een a member of the Friends churcli since 19 12, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 629 

and has always taken a very active part in the affairs of this denomination, 
l)eing a trustee in the church at the present time. The hfe which Mr. Shirley 
has led stamps him as a man who has the interest of his community at heart, 
and one who is not only concerned with his indiyidual advancement, but takes 
a keen interest in the welfare of his friends and neighbors. Such men are 
a help to the community in which they live, and because Mr. Shirley is such 
a man he has won the esteem of a large circle of friends and accjuaintances. 



WILLIAM WALLACE LEACH. 

There are very few farmers in Hendricks county whose memory goes 
back to the time when there were but two roads in the county, the National 
road and the old State road. In those days, back in the thirties, it was pos- 
sible to go out and shoot deer any place in Hendricks county, and wild turkeys, 
squirrels and small game of all sorts were as abundant as English sparrows 
are today. William Wallace Leach, who has lived in this county nearly 
eighty years, has seen as many as ten deer in a herd in his boyhood days in 
this county, and flocks of wild turkeys numbering hundreds. As he travels 
around over the highly improved roads of his county now in his automobile his 
mind goes back to the time when in order to get to his home he had to 
follow a bridle path. The complete history of such a man as William Wal- 
lace Leach would be a history of Indiana for eighty years, civic, educational 
and moral. 

William Wallace Leach, retired farmer of North Salem, was born in 
Bath county, Kentucky, October 15, 1835, the son of Meredith and Eliza 
(Allison) Leach, both of whom were natives of Kentucky, where they were 
reared and married. In 1836, when William Wallace was only one year old, 
his parents moved to this county and settled south of Lizton, in Union town- 
ship, where his father entered government land. The axe of man had never 
touched a tree on this farm and here in this primitive wilderness Meredith 
Leach and his young wife began housekeeping and here they remained tjhe 
rest of their lives, his death occurring in 1859, while his wife survived him 
a few years. Mr. and Mrs. Meredith Leach were the parents of seven 
children, of whom William Wallace, whose history is portrayed here, is the 
oldest, the other in the order of their birth being as follows : James Valen- 
tine, deceased; Mary L., deceased wife of Amos Rook; Martha Jane, the de- 
ceased wife of Moses Rawlings ; Sarah Ann. the widow of Je])tha \\'est ; 



630 HENDRICKS COUNTY^ INDIANA. 

Amanda Louisa, the widow of William Harrison, and Francis Edna, who 
died in childhood. 

William Wallace Leach was reared amid these primitive conditions, 
hearing- the music of the axe in the daytime, and yet he probably spent As 
happy a boyhood as any of the boys of today. A very meager education was 
his, because the schools in his day were confined to three "R's" and very 
little of that. In February, 1862, he was married to Margaret F. Clark, who 
was born November 29, 1841, in Union township, this county. Her parents 
were Silas Garrett and Mary Ann (Mount) Clark. Silas Clark was born in 
Kentucky, near Lexington, the son of William and Francis (Blades) Clark, 
and came to this county early in its history and here married Mary Ann Mount, 
the daughter of Alfred and Margaret Mount, the same family which gave a 
governor to the state of Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. Clark reared a large family 
of eleven children, only four of whom are now living. The sons are : William, 
of Missouri; James Thomas, of Bloomington, Indiana, and Henry Wash- 
ington, of Iowa. Two other brothers, George and John, died in the West. 
Of the five daughters, Sarah Elizabeth married Thomas Stewart ; Jane became 
the wife of John Russell; Rhoda Ann, the wife of Linden Wade, and Ella 
died when a young woman. 

When Mr. Leach was married he already owned forty acres of land in 
Union township, and here the young couple started in life. He rented land 
in addition to his own for farming, and by thrift and ecomony was enabled 
to save some money, and in a few years bought another eighty acres near 
his first farm. In 1844 he traded for a farm of sixty-five acres near North 
Salem and moved into North Salem, where he engaged in the grocery busi- 
ness for six years. He was also in the dry goods business for a part of the 
time when he lived in North Salem. He then traded his grocery for a 
farm two and one-half miles northwest of Salem, at the same time selling 
his sixty-five-acre farm and buying one hundred acres adjoining the farm 
for which he traded, making him a total of one hundred and eighty acres of 
land, which he still owns. He lived on this farm for about five years and 
then bought property in North Salem, where he has lived for the past twelve 
years. 

Mr. Leach is usually a Democrat in politics, although he does not hesi- 
tate to vote for the best men in local elections irrespective of politics. Mr. 
and Mrs. Leach have now 1)een married for more than fifty-one years and 
are both enjoying good health at the present time. They are both able to 
read without glasses, have good hearing and are cheerful and genial at all 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 63 1 

times. In recent years they have made several trips to Hot Springs, Arkan- 
sas, and to Florida, and are frequently seen in good weather in their auto- 
mobile driving around the roads of Hendricks county, enjoying themselves 
L as if they were lifty years younger. 



■ AUBREY C. PEBWORTH, M. D. 

The man who devotes his talents and energies to the noble work of min- 
istering to the ills and alleviating the sufferings of humanity is pursuing a 
calling which in dignity, importance and beneficial results is second to none 
other. If true to his profession and earnest in his efforts to enlarge his 
sphere of usefulness, he is indeed a benefactor of his kind, for to him more 
than any other man are intrusted the safety, the comfort, and, in many cases, 
the lives of those who place themselves under his care and profit by services. 
It is gratifying to note in the series of personal sketches appearing in this 
work that there remain many native sons who are maintaining the prestige of 
their county in other fields. Many have gone to other parts of the state and yet 
they look back to Hendricks county as their real home. Among the many 
citizens who were born in this county and then left for wider fields is Aubrey 
C. Pebworth, a successful physician of West Indianapolis. 

Aubrey C. Pebworth, the son of James H. and Marcia (Carrington) 
Pebworth, was born near Danville, Indiana, December 28, 1877. His father 
was a native of Shelby county, Kentucky, and his mother spent all of her 
life in Hendricks county. James Pebworth came to this county with his parr 
ents when he was a small boy and followed the life of a farmer until his death, 
September 13. 19 10. He served in the Civil War and a wound in the head 
which he received at the battle of Lookout Mountain was finally the cause 
of his death. Mr. and Mrs. James Pebworth were the parents of six chil- 
dren : Mrs. Morton Ellis, of Pittsboro ; IMrs. Frank A. Haynes, of Pittsboro ; 
Eva, one of the best known teachers of Hendricks county; Dr. Aubrey C, the 
youngest of the family, and two others who are deceased. 

Doctor Pebworth received his common and high school education in 
the schools at IMttsboro, in his native county, and immediatelv after his 
graduation entered the Central College of Physicians and Surgeons at Indi- 
anapolis. Upon finishing his medical course in 1905 he at once began the 
practice of medicine in West Indianapolis, ^^•here he has been verv successful. 
During the period of his professional practice in that community. Doctor 



632 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Pebworth has not only gained the respect of his confreres in his chosen field, 
but has also sustained a sound reputation for uprightness and nobility of 
character in all the relations of life. He has realized that to those who at- 
tain determinate success in the medical profession there must not only be 
technical ability, but also a broad human sympathy which must pass from 
mere sentiment to an actuating motive for helpfulness. 

Doctor Pebworth was married on August 9, 1905. to Mary Thomas, the 
daughter of Rev. and Mrs. E. D. Thomas, and to this happy union there have 
been born two children, James T. and Robert C. The Doctor is a mem- 
ber of the Marion county and Indiana state medical societies and is inter- 
ested in all the meetings of these organizations. He is a member of the Free 
and Accepted Masons and also belongs to the Indianapolis Chapter of Royal 
Arch Masons. Politically, he is allied with the Progressive party. In his 
church relations he is a member of the Christian church, while his wife 
retains her connection with the Baptist denomination. Mrs. Pebworth is 
secretary of the Hendricks County Society for Indianapolis. She is a gradu- 
ate of the teachers' course at the Central Normal College of Danville and was 
a teacher in the public schools before her marriage. Mr. and Mrs. Pebworth 
are genial and hospitable people who have gained a wide circle of friends in 
the communitv where thev live. 



WILLIAM R. McClelland. 

It cannot be other than interesting to note in the series of personal 
sketches appearing in this work the varying conditions that have compassed 
those whose careers are outlined, and the effort has been made in each case to 
throw well focussed light on to the individuality and to bring into proper 
perspective the scheme of each respective career. Each man who strives to 
fulfill his part in connection with human life and human activities is deserving 
of recognition, whatever may be his field of endeavor, and it is the function 
of works of this nature to perpetuate for future generations an authentic 
record concerning those represented in its pages, and the value of such publi- 
cations is certain to be cumulative for all time to come, showing forth the 
individual and specific accomplishments of which generic history is ever 
engendered. 

William R. McClelland, the present general agent for the State Life 
Insurance Company of Indiana, was born in \\^ayne township, Marion 




WILLIAM R. McClelland 



] 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 633 

county, Indiana, June 21, 1848. His parents were Jonathan D. and Eliza 
J. (Wilson) McClelland, his father being a native of Union county, Indiana, 
and his mother of Kentucky. Jonathan McClelland was born in 1816, the 
year Indiana was admitted to the Union, and came to Marion county, this 
state, with his father, Francis McClelland, when he was a small boy of 
six years. Francis McClelland settled on a farm in Marion county, near the 
Hendricks county line, on land which he entered from the government. He 
lived on this farm until his death. Mr. and Mrs. Jonathan McClelland were 
the parents of seven children, only three of whom are living, Charles, of Dan- 
ville, Indiana ; James, of Ponca, Oklahoma, and William R. 

William R. McClelland was born on his father's farm in Marion county 
and educated in the district schools of his home neighborhood. He continued 
to work on his father's farm until he was twenty-four years of age, when he 
went to Danville and entered the employ of a dry goods firm as a clerk. A 
few years later he started out in business for himself, engaging in the furni- 
ture and undertaking business in Danville, in which business he continued for 
about twentv-five years. He left the furniture and undertaking business to 
become identified with the State Life Insurance Company as general agent, 
and in 1905 removed to Indianapolis, where he has since continued to reside. 

Mr. McClelland has always taken a prominent part in Republican poli- 
tics in his county and has been signally honored by his party on several 
different occasions. He served as county clerk of Hendricks county from 
1884 to 1888, was a member for four years of the board of control of the 
Indiana Boys School at Plainfield, and was a member of the school board at 
Danville for ten years. In all of these positions he showed himself thor- 
oughly familiar with the duties of his office and proved himself to be not 
only an able and efficient official, but one who won the confidence of the 
citizens of the county. 

Mr. McClelland was married to Sarah E. Nichols in 1872, a daughter of 
James and Rachel Nichols, who were both members of pioneer families of 
Hendricks county. Mrs. William McClelland died on March 16. 1912, leav- 
ing one son, Harry Nichols, who is married and has one son, William Pearce, 
aged two years. Harry Nichols is in the auditing department of the State 
Life Insurance Company, and resides in Indianapolis. 

Mr. McClelland has been a life-long member of the Methodist Episcopal 
church, and has been a member of the official board of the iVIethodist Epis- 
copal church for more than forty years. Fraternally, he is a member of the 
Independent Order of Odd Fellows, with which order he has been identified 
for more than fortv-two vears, and has held every office in Silcox Lodge No. 



634 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

123, at Danville. On different occasions he has represented his local lodge in 
grand lodge. 

Thus far Air. IMcClelland's life has been one of strenuous activity and 
by reason of the success with which it has been attended, his friends are 
justified in predicting for him a still greater sphere of usefulness and effi- 
ciency. As a citizen of Hendricks county for many years he stood high in 
the esteem of his fellow men. Whether as a merchant or as a public official, 
his infiuence was always public-spirited and progressive, and at all times 
he was found willing to lend his aid and influence in behalf of enterprises 
for the material benefit and advancement of his city and county, and for the 
intellectual, social and moral good of the people. He is a man of social 
tendencies, kind, obliging, unassuming and straightforward and honorable 
in all the relations of life, and is universally respected and popular among his 
large circle of friends and acquaintances. 



CHARLES RELANDER. 



There are few natives of far-away Sweden in Indiana and still fewer 
in Hendricks county, but the few who have come to our state have been 
among our best citizens. No country of the old world has sent to us better 
and more substantial people than Sweden and fortunate, indeed, is the com- 
munity that can boast of Swedish descendants. They are always loyal to 
their adopted country and are a valuable asset to the locality in which they 
settle. 

Charles Relander, the son of Nels and Lottie (Ericson) Relander, was 
born in Grenna, Sweden, in 1843, ^^^ lived there till eighteen years of age, 
then went to Stockholm, the capital of the country. He received a good prac- 
tical education in the public schools of Grenna and early in life started to 
learn the bricklayer's trade. At the age of twenty-four he came to America 
to seek his fortune and made his first stop at Chicago. In 1869 he came 
to Danville, Hendricks county, Indiana, landing in the town for the first 
time on June 17th. He at once began work on the Big Four railroad, which 
was then being built through the county, and for the next twenty-eight years 
continued in the employ of this company. For twenty-one years of this 
time he was section boss and during that time saved his money so that he 
was enabled to buy an eighty-acre farm in Center township, this county. 
In 1897 ^^ retired from the service of the Big Four and went onto his farm 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 635 

where he has since remained. Since taking up farming he has added another 
eighty acres to his farm and now owns one hundred and sixty acres in Cen- 
ter township. He has been a success as a farmer and stock raiser, despite 
his long years at another occupation. He has shown his abihty by adapting 
himself to a new occupation without having had any previous experience in 
it, and in the course of a few years being recognized as one of the leading 
farmers of his township. 

Mr. Relander was married in 1870 to Mary Elizabeth Curtis, the daugh- 
ter of Peter and Sarah (Kirkendall) Curtis. The grandfather of Mrs. 
Relander was Peter Curtis, who was born in 1763 in Virginia and served for 
five years in the Revolutionary War. He was at the battle at Guilford 
Court House in North Carolina in 1781, and was later married at that place. 
He and his young bride then settled in Kentucky and there, in Garrard county, 
Peter, Jr., the father of Mrs. Relander, was born on February 14, iSoS. Peter, 
Jr., grew up in Kentucky and on Christmas Day, 1827, was married to 
Sarah Kirkendall, the daughter of Richard and Betsy (Reed) Kirkendall, 
She was born in Garrard county, Kentucky, September 18, 1811. Her father 
was of Pennsylvania Dutch ancestry and her mother of Irish parentage. 
In 1829 Peter Curtis and wife came to Indiana and settled near Crawfords- 
ville, shortly after moving into the town, where Mr. Curtis followed the 
trade of a blacksmith for several years. About the year 1840 he moved to 
Hendricks county and bought the Scearce farm, half a mile west of Danville. 
The family lived here for a number of years and then moved into Danville 
where the father and mother spent the remainder of their days, he passing 
away in 1890 and his wife in 1892. During the Civil War they had charge of 
the Hendricks county poor farm, which at that time was south of the 
present location. Mr. Curtis was a strong Republican and was also a great 
student of Masonry. To Peter Curtis and wife were born twelve chil- 
dren, four daughters and eight sons, two of the sons dying in childhood. 
The other six sons served in the Civil War, one of them, Ambrose, dying in 
the service. Mary Elizabeth Curtis, the wife of Mr. Relander, was born on 
the Scearce farm, on December 21. 1851. 

Mr. and Mrs. Relander are the parents of five children, Charlotte, 
P'earl, Fred, Frank and Edward. Charlotte is a graduate of the Central 
Normal College at Danville, class of 1895, and has taught continuously 
since that time. She taught three years in the district schools and since 
then in the Danville schools. She is a very successful teacher, a wide reader, 
has an excellent library of her own and is an entertaining conversationalist. 



636 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Pearl is the wife of Claude C. Rivers and lives in Yorba Linda, California. 
Fred is a farmer at Exeter, California. He married Lessie Pearcy and she 
died in February, 1912, leaving two sons, Pearcy and Clifford. Frank died 
in 1894, at the age of eleven . Edward is an electrician and lives at Lebanon, 
Indiana. He married Flossie Dinsmore and has one daughter, Geraldine. 
Mr. Relander is a stanch Republican and takes an active interest in 
local politics. He is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, 
and he and his wife have long been faithful members of the Christian church 
at Danville, to which they contribute liberally of their means. Mr. Relander 
is a man who has made everything he has today, and now in the evening of 
life can look back over a career which has been well spent in every way. 



WILLIAM T. HIGGINS. 



One of the oldest and best known families in Hendricks county is the 
Higgins familv, six generations of whom have lived in this county. David 
Higgins, the first of the family to come to Indiana, was born in Mercer 
county, Kentucky, in 1795. His wife, Helen Mudd, was a native of Mary- 
land, whose parents had moved to Kentucky from their native state. Soon 
after their marriage, David Higgins and his young wife set out for Indi- 
ana, and in the spring of 182 1 they stopped for a short time in Lawrence 
county. Later they moved on north and located about four miles south 
of Greencastle. In 183 1 they came to Hendricks county and settled the 
southeast cjuarter section 33, in Marion township, this land having been 
entered in 1828 by Thomas, the brother of David. On this farm David 
Higgins spent the rest of his life, dying in 185 1, his wife surviving him 
several years. He proved to be a successful farmer and at the time of his 
death owned fifteen hundred acres of land in the county. 

Michael Higgins, the father of William T.. was born in Putnam county, 
August 5, 1823, and spent his boyhood days on his father David's farm. 
He was married on October 7, 1847, to Elizabeth Plaster, the daughter of 
William Plaster, an early settler of Middle township, this county. Mrs. 
Michael Higgins was born September 30, 1S22. To Mr. and Mrs. Michael 
Higgins were born six children, William T., David A., Mrs. Mary Jane 
Wilson, Mrs. Cassandra Hunt, Charles E. and May. Mrs. Michael Higgins 
died August 15, 1883. He was the largest land owner in Marion township 
at one time, having eight hundred and eighty acres of valuable land in this 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 637 

township. Michael Higgins was a truly remarkal)le man and his abihty was 
recognized by every one. He served his township as trustee and his county 
as treasurer, filling both offices to the entire satisfaction of his fellow citi- 
zens. He was a hard worker, a good manager, diligent, thrifty and per- 
sistent in carrying out his plans. He was of unusually upright character, 
strictly moral and took an active stand for righteousness and the better- 
ment of humanity. He and his wife were members of the Christian church 
and lived up to the teachings of the church as near as they pos.:ibly could. 
He died in April, 1903, a man who was loved by everyone with whom he 
came in contact. 

William T. Higgins, the son of Michael Higgins and wife, was born 
October 2, 1848, in the township where he has spent his whole life. He lived 
at home until his marriage to ]\Iary Underwood on January 2^, 1877. She 
is a sister of Obed Underwood, a sketch of whom, elsewhere in this volume, 
gives the family history of the Underwood family. William began farming 
for himself about two miles northeast of New Winchester on a farm of his 
own. About two years after his marriage he moved to his present farm in 
the northwest part of Marion township. He has been very successful, as 
is shown by his present farm of live hundred and sixty acres, of which four 
hundred acres are cultivable. He was formerly a heavy dealer in live stock, 
but has confined his energies to the raising of grain in the last few years. 
He has made many improvements on his place and has a very comfortable 
and attractive home. 

Mr. and Mrs. Higgins have three children: Oscar, born in 1878. who 
graduated in the New Winchester high school, and later married Olive 
Oakley, the daughter of James and Ellen (Ader) Oakley. James Oakley, 
born and reared in Putnam county, was the son of Lafayette and Mildred 
(Harris) Oakley. Alildred Harris was born in Kentucky and came to Put- 
nam county in early childhood with her parents. Her mother's maiden name 
was Neeves. Lafayette Oakley also came from Kentucky in childhood 
and settled with his parents in Putnam county. Ellen Ader was born and 
reared in Putnam county and was the daughter of Adam and Alargaret 
(Chatham) Ader. After Oscar Higgins. the eldest son of William T., was 
married he farmed in Putnam county for one year and then moved to his 
present home on his father's farm. Oscar and wife have two children, Edna 
Merle, and Virgil Wayne, who died recently. 

Clay, the second child of William T. and wife, died at the age of thir- 
teen and the voungest son. Earl Glendon. is still at home. The wife and 



638 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

mother died in April. 1893. Politically. Mr. Higgins is a Democrat, though 
he has never aspired to public office. Religiously, the members of his family 
affiliate with the Christian church. 



I 



JOHN R. GARNER. 



All callings, whether humble or exalted, may be productive of some 
measure of success, if enterprise and industry, coupled with a well-directed 
purpose, form the motive force of the person directing the same, and in no 
case is this fact more apparent than in agricultural pursuits. It is a well 
authenticated fact that success comes as the result of legitimate and well 
applied energy, unflagging determination and perseverance as well as the 
above enumerated qualities. When a course of action is once decided upon, 
these attributes are essential. Success is never known to smile upon the 
idler or dreamer and she never courts the loafer, only those who have 
diligently sought her favor being crowned with her blessings. 

John R. Garner was born in Brown township, Hendricks county, In- 
diana, on December 14. 1861, about one and one-half miles northwest of his 
present home, being a son of Solomon B. and Deborah (Lyons) Garner, 
both natives of Bath county, Kentucky. They had been married several 
years before they brought their family to the Hoosier state. After coming 
here they settled on the farm where the immediate subject of this sketch 
was born. This farm comprised some two hundred acres, being land which 
Solomon Garner had entered from the government and on which he passed 
the remainder of his life, his death occurring in 1861. His wife died on 
the same place in 1880. There were nine children in their family, but one 
other besides the subject living today. 

John R. Garner passed his youth and earl}^ manhood under the care 
of the parental roof, remaining there until first married, on December 17, 
1871, to Sarah A. Jones, daughter of Benjamin and Nancy (Dodson) Jones, 
both of whom were from the state of Kentucky, and who took up their 
abode in Brown township, Hendricks county, upon coming to Indiana. 
Sarah A. Jones, first wife of the subject, died on November 17, 1888, leav- 
ing two children, the eldest being Viola, who is the wife of Robert Davis, 
of Rossville, Illinois, where they live at the present time. They are the 
parents of a family of nine children, namely: Ruth, Lucretia, Mary, Esther, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 639 

Ralph, Agnes, Edith. Randle and Arthur. The second child of Mr. Garner 
by his first wife is a son, Arthur, who chose as his wife Delia Johnson, 
daughter of Martin and Norah Johnson, of Hendricks county. They make 
their home in Middle township, Hendricks county, and the parents of three 
children, Russell, Crystal and Catherine. 

After his first marriage, John R. Garner took up his residence on a 
tract of forty acres, being part of the land originally entered from the gov- 
ernment by his father, and there they lived for eighteen years. In 1890 he 
took as his second wife Sarah A. Jones, daughter of Uriah and Frances 
(Kenneday) Jones. Uriah Jones was the son of Benjamin and Nancy 
(Moore) Jones, who were of Kentucky nativity. The parents of Frances 
(Kenneday) Jones were also from that state. Mr. Garner's wives w^ere of 
the same name, the first wife being a half aunt of the present Mrs. Garner. 
After his second marriage, Mr. Garner built his present home, where they 
have since resided. There is one child, Ethel, by the second marriage, who 
remains at home. 

Mr. Garner recalls with interest the methods of farming which were 
in vogue in his younger days, w^hen he plowed wnth a yoke of oxen. He also 
has used the reap hook for harvesting grain, before the days of reapers or 
any of the farm machinery now thought necessary by the smallest and 
poorest of agriculturists. He also recalls with pleasure the days of sugar- 
water gathering time and the work of the sugar camp, which became quite a 
social affair for the neighborhood and was eagerly looked forward to from 
year to year. Then, too, the sugar so made was the entire supply of the 
pioneer families for the ensuing year. Mr. Garner has always confined his 
efforts to the vocation of farming and has seen this labor grow from one 
of the most arduous of occupations, wnth its attendant comparatively small 
remuneration, to an up-to-date business, wherein machinery of all kinds is 
employed as well as modern and scientific methods and the farmer has be- 
come the most independent man in any line of business. 

Mr. Garner's religious affiliation is with the Baptist church, of which 
his wife and daughter are also members, and the entire family contribute 
of time and means to furthering the cause of that church society. By a 
straightforward and commendable course, Mr. Garner has made his way 
to a respected position among his associates, winning the hearty admiration 
of the people of his neighborhood as a broad-minded and upright citizen 
whose line of conduct has ever been above reproach. 



640 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

WILLIAM M. ROSE. 

To a great extent the prosperity of the agricultural sections of our 
country is due to the honest industry, the sturdy persistence, the unswerving 
perseverance and the wise economy which so prominently characterize the 
farming element of the Hoosier state. Among this class may be mentioned 
William Ai. Rose, who, by reason of years of indefatigable labor and honest 
effort, has not only acquired a well merited material prosperity, but has also 
richly earned the highest esteem of all with whom he is associated, as is 
shown by the fact that he has been entrusted with important official positions, 
the duties of which he has most faithfully and ably discharged, thus eminently 
meriting the high esteem in which he is universally held. 

W^illiam M. Rose, a prosperous farmer of Eel River township, was born 
November 23, 1859, in Putnam county, near the Hendricks county line. 
His parents were Lewis M. and Margaret (Kelley) Rose. Lewis M. Rose 
was the son of Lewis A. Rose and w'ife, who were natives of Kentucky and 
lived in the vicinity of Bowling Green. Lewis M. Rose married Margaret 
Kelley, the daughter of William and Alalinda (West) Kelley. William 
Kelley was born in Nashville, Tennessee, and came here as a young man, 
entering one hundred and sixty acres of government land near New W^in- 
chester. However, he did not farm, but became the pioneer merchant of 
New Winchester, where he died early in life. Melinda West, the wife of 
Mr. Kelley, was born in Kentucky and came here with her parents and 
located near New Winchester, where she grew to womanhood and on Febru- 
ary 22, 1855, married Lewis M. Rose. After his marriage Lewis M. Rose 
moved to near New Maysville, where he lived until the breaking out of the 
Civil War. In August, 1862, he enlisted in Company B. Ninety-ninth Regi- 
ment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and died while in the service in the follow- 
ing January. For several years after his death, his widow remained on the 
farm near New Maysville, and later married James Hayes, and moved to his 
farm in the northwestern part of l^.Iarion township, in this county, where she 
still resides. Lewis M. Rose and wiie were the parents of three children, 
one of whom died in infancy, the other two being William M., and Mrs. 
Alice Dooley, of Danville. 

William M. Rose grew up on his stepfather's farm and after completing 
the course in the common schools in his neighborhood, he then attended the 
normal school at Ladoga for two terms. After his marriage, he began farm- 
ing in Marion township near his mother and there remained until 1905. He 




MR. AND MRS. WILLIAM M. ROS: 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 64 1 

already owned a farm when he was married and in 1905 sold this and bought 
one hundred and ninety-three and a half acres about a mile northeast of North 
Salem, where he still lives. On his new farm he has built a fine residence, 
good barns and improved the place in every way. As a farmer he ranks 
among the first in the township and divides his attention between the raising 
of grain and the production of live stock. 

Air. Rose was married on August 21, 1884, to Amanda Bowen, who was 
born in Putnam county, Indiana, December 9, i860, the daughter of James 
and Nancy (Higgins) Bowen. Nancy Higgins was born in this township, 
her parents coming to this county from Mercer county, Kentucky, in 1821. 
James Bowen was reared in Putnam county, Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. Rose 
are the parents of three children, all of whom are at home, Ethel C, Edith 
Lottie and Edward Maurice. 

Mr. Rose and his family are all members of the Christian church and to 
this denomination render faithful and zealous support. Mr. Rose has been 
an honorable, upright, industrious and temperate man all of his life, and has 
performed well his part in the body politic. No one questions his standing 
as one of those citizens who always stand for the best welfare of the com- 
monwealth. 



MURAT W. HOPKINS. 



This biographical sketch has to do with Murat \\. Hopkins, who has 
for a number of years been recognized as one of the successful lawyers of 
Indianapolis. As a citizen he is public spirited and enterprising; as a friend 
and neighbor, he combines the qualities of head and heart that have won 
confidence and respect; as an attorney, he is easily the equal of his pro- 
fessional brethren at the Marion county bar. 

Murat W. Hopkins, now one of the leading attorneys of Indianapolis, 
and formerly a resident of Hendricks county, Indiana, was born in Brown 
township, this county, on October 20. 1857, the son of William and Ruah 
(Harding) Hopkins, his father being a native of Maryland and his mother 
of Kentucky. William Hopkins was a farmer all of his life, coming to Hen- 
dricks county, Indiana, about 1840. and locating in Brown township, where 
he followed the occupation of a farmer until his death, which occurred in 
1 89 1. William Hopkins was one of the prominent citizens of the county 
in that early dav, and for many years served as trustee of his township. He 
(41) 



5_i2 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

also held many other appointments of trust and frequently served as adminis- 
trator or guardian. Mrs. William I-lopkins died in 1907. They were the 
parents of six children. Mrs. Sarah Lawhead, of Newburgh, New York; 
Erastus, of Marienthal, Kansas; Wyatt. deceased; Li.ton, of Salem, Oregon; 
Everett, who lives on the old home place two and one-half miles north of 
Brownsburg. and Murat W.. the immediate subject of this review. 

Murat W. Hopkins was born and reared on his father's farm, receiving 
his elementary education in the district schools of his home township. He 
taught in the public schools of this county and then attended the State Nor- 
mal School at Terre Haute, after which he entered the State University of 
Iowa City, where he received his degree of Bachelor of Law in 1881. The 
following year he began the practice of law at Danville, and continued there 
until 1 89 1 when he went to Indianapolis, at which city he has built up a 
successful practice in general work and specializing in legal work relating 
to corporations. He has been a constant student of the law and during his 
practice of nearly twenty-five years in the Capitol City he has enjoyed a suc- 
cessful ])ractice and now occupies an influential position among the lawyers 
of that city. He is a member of the Indianapolis Bar Association, the 
Indiana Bar Association and the American Bar Association. 

Mr. Hopkins was married on April 20, 1882, to Allie L. Montgomery, 
of Mattoon, Illinois, who was formerly a resident of Brownsburg, Hen- 
dricks county, and was a daughter of Tyra and Caroline (Lockhart) 
Montgomery. Her grandfather was Thomas Lockhart, a pioneer 
Christian preacher of Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. Hopkins have two daughters, 
Kate Elliott, the wife of Wendall Coval, of Indianapolis, and Caroline Ruah. 
the wife of Donald Gordon, of Metamora. Indiana. 

Mr. Hopkins has been affiliated with the Democratic party since he 
reached voting age and has always taken an active interest in the affairs of 
his party. However, lie has not felt inclined to enter into the struggle for 
any official position, being content to devote his time and energv to his 
interesting and successful legal practice. He is a member of the Indiana 
Democratic Club at Indianapolis, and he is also a member of the Art Asso- 
ciation of that city. Fraternally, he belongs to the Free and Accepted Masons, 
is a Scottish-Rite Mason, and belongs to the Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles 
of the Mystic Shrine and the Knights of Pythias. 

Mr. Hopkins, in his public and private life, is regarded as a man c*" 
high integrity, with kindly impulses for his fellow citizens and alwavs ready 
to help those who are deserving of assistance. His love of good books has 
caused him to accumulate a goodly sized private library, in which can be 



PIENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 643 

found many old, rare, interesting and valuable volumes. In his law library 
is to be found one of the \'ery few complete sets now in existence of the 
session laws of Indiana enacted b}' the General Asseml^ly since the formation 
of the state. There will also be found in his law^ library original volumes 
of the Indiana territorial laws, enacted before the state was organized. 



CALVIN T. HAULK. 



In the agricultural circles of Hendricks county, Indiana, a county noted 
for the degree of success attained and the high standing of its citizens fol- 
lowing that vocation, there is no one more deser\'ing of favorable comment 
than he whose name is founrl at the head of this paragraph. He is descend- 
ed from some of the earlier families of the county, men and women who 
endured all the privations and sufferings of the early pioneers. The at- 
tributes of their stalwart characters still find expression in their sons and 
daughters of today and the energy, perseverance and enterprise which Cal- 
vin T. Haulk has exhibited in carrying his plans to successful execution mark 
him w^orthy of the ancestors wdio did so much to impress upon this locality 
in its early days the principles of correct living and advanced ideas. 

Calvin T. Haulk was born on December 28, 1870, in eastern Tennessee, 
the son of Andrew and Seda Emeline (Ottinger) Haulk, both of whom 
were natives of the same state, the former having been born in Greene county 
and the latter in Cook county, the daughter of Thomas and Lavina (Ottin- 
ger) Ottinger. Thomas was born in Virginia and La^•ina in Pennsylvania and, 
despite the similarity of name, there was no relationship existing between the 
two families. Andrew Haulk, father of the immediate subject, was born on 
January i, 1847, ''^"•^ ^""'^-^ the son of William Haulk, also a nacive of Greene 
countv, Tennessee. All his life Andrew was engaged in farming in his 
native county and died there on August 3, 1872. leaving his widow and 
three small children, namely: Calvin (the subject), \\\ade and ]\Ialvina. 
Early in her widowhood, Mrs. Andrew Haulk brought her three children to 
the home of her brother, Wylie Ottinger, who lived near Whitestown, Boone 
county, this state, and in February, 1883, she again united in marriage, this 
time becoming the wife of Jacob Neese, also a native of Cooke county, Ten- 
nessee, and a son of Abraham and Mollie (Blazer) Neese. When Jacob Neese 
was twelve years old, his parents left their native state and came to Boone 
countv, where they passed the remainder of their lives. They left Tennessee 



644 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

during the Civil War, making the journey all the distance in a wagon, bring- 
ing" with them only a few of the most precious of the family effects. Jacob 
Neese grew to manhood on the home farm in Boone county and about the 
year of 1900 he and his wife came into Hendricks county and now reside 
in the southeastern part of Lincoln township. To their union have been 
born live children. \\'esley, Delia, Charles, Grace and Earl. Mr. Neese is 
identilied with the IMethodist Episcopal church and his wife is a member of 
the Lutheran society. 

Calvin T. Haulk remained with his mother until the time of his marriage. 
In his boyhood days he attended the district schools of their locality, where 
he secured the rudiments of a good education, and after leaving school he 
engaged in farm work, working out among the neighbors. On December 
16, 1893, he was united in marriage with Addie B. Isenhouer, who was born 
July 9, 1872, in Boone county, near W'hitestown, and is the daughter of 
William W. and Mary (Claman) Isenhouer. William W. Isenhouer v^^as 
born in Boone county in 1850, being a son of Jonathan and Margaret 
(Whisnand) Isenhouer. His parents were also natives of Tennessee and 
early in their married life made the journey through the wilderness from 
Monroe county to Boone county, this state, about 1848. Thev came on 
horseback, carrying their oldest son, following the faint trails through the 
forests, fording streams, and in due time reaching the new countrv. Thev 
did not stay long in Monroe county, coming almost directly to Boone, where 
there w^ere few traces of civilization at that early date. They entered a 
tract of government land which was heavily timbered, and this they re- 
moved first of all so as to erect a cabin home. Gradually they reclaimed the 
soil from the grasp of the wdlderness, gradually acquired greater com- 
forts in the home, and on this homestead near Whitestown they lived to 
a good old age. They celebrate their golden wedding anniversary No- 
vember 9, 1887. His death occurred in August, 1894, and she survived until 
December 24, 191 1, age ninety-two years, eleven months and three days. 
Isaac and Rebecca Whisnand, parents of Margaret and Rebecca Whisnand, 
come from eastern Tennessee in 1830, and settled near Bloomington, Mon- 
roe county, which at that time comprised but a few cabins and was called 
Hendersonljurg. There they settled on a farm, where thev spent the re- 
mainder of their days and died. Isaac Whisnand was opposed to matters 
religious and did not train his children in any faith. Margaret obtained pos- 
session of a Testament by stealth and kept it hid from her father under 
a sugar trough, where she went to read it and pray. Its beautiful truths 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 645 

appealed to her girlish heart and .he joined the Methodist church at Whites- 
town. At that time the society had no church building, but a short time 
after an edifice was erected in which the society worshipped for a number 
of years. Within the last few years it was torn down, and she alone was 
living of its meml:)ers at the time of its erection. Her husband also became 
a member at the time of its erection. Her husband also became a member 
of that church through her ministrations. William W. Isenhouer was unit- 
ed in marriage with Mary Angeline Claman in 1870. She v/as born in 
Monroe county, thi,; state, being the daughter of William and Rebecca ( Whis- 
nand) Claman. William Claman was the son of John Claman, a native 
of West Virginia, who, with his wife, come to Indiana about 1835. I^ 1836 
William Claman married Rebecca Whisnand, who was a twin sister of 
William W. Isenhouer's mother. After marriage, William W. Isenhouer set- 
tled down to farming and stock raising near Whitestown where he re- 
mained until 1883, when he removed to Missouri where the family stayed 
a year and then returned to the old home near \\'hitestown. In 1886 they 
again left the farm, this time taking up their residence in Lebanon, Boone 
county, and in 1906 left the Hoosier state, going to Arkansas, where his 
death occurred in 190Q. His widow still resides in that state. William W. 
Isenhouer was a most affectionate husband and father, a man of marked do- 
mestic traits who was never happier than when doing something for those 
he loved. He was a faithful friend and neighbor, always obliging and self- 
sacrificing and ever anxious to extend a helping hand to those in need, even 
at the cost of self denial. For many years he was in poor health, but wa.:. of 
such a sincere and cheery disposition that he habitually looked on the bright 
side of life and bore his affliction in a spirit of meekness. Fur manv years 
he and his wife had been faithful members of the Methodist Epi-copal church 
and through its teachings he found the beautiful way of life that even 
suffering could not darken for him. 

After marriage, the subject and wife lived in Boone countv on a rented 
farm and in March. 1904. purchased the farm where they now reside in 
the southeastern part of Lincoln township, this county. The farm comprises 
sixty-three acres and is in an excellent state of cultivation. To ]\Ir. and ]\Irs. 
Haulk have been born five children, namely : W^illiam Russell, born March 
25. 1895; Ernest Isaac, born September 27, 1897; R^y Andrew, born De- 
cember 19, 1899; Ruth Annabel, born January 2. 1905. and Margaret E\-an- 
geline, born February 26, 1911. Both Mr. and Mrs. Haulk are devout mem- 
bers of the Methodist Episcopal church, she having united with that society 
at the early age of thirteen. 



646 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

In politics Mr. Haulk is a Republican, though taking no active interest in 
pc^litics. and his fraternal affiliations are with the Modern Woodmen of Amer- 
ica. He is a self-made man. who has worked hard to get ahead in financial 
matters and has displayed the marked economy which is a distinct trait of 
the enterprising American farmer. He went into debt in the jjurchasing of 
his farm and then his efforts were lient to discharging that obligation and ac- 
quiring all modern comforts to make more ])leasant the daily life. No longer 
is the vocation of farming looked u])on as one of hardship and privation, 
for more and more the American ])uldic is coming to realize that the man 
who is most independent, who has the opportunity to most fully live and 
enjov life, is the farmer. All the conveniences of the modern home of the 
city are w^ithin his reach and in addition he enjoys the freedom and inde- 
pendence known in no other vocation. Mrs. Haulk's family were among the 
lir.-t in this section of the country and have many interesting experiences to 
tell. There were no matches and fire was kept constantly Imrning. If by 
any chance this should become extinguished, it was a laborious task to carrv 
fire from the nearest neighbor, possibly some distance awav. Tallow candles 
and "dips" furnished the illumination and the liig fireplace v, a;< where the 
meals were prepared. How changed are all these conditions, brought about 
by men of foresight, energy and thrifr, and in this class of worthy citizens 
the subject of this sketch well belongs. 



AMOS D. Mccormick. 



Among the many sons of Hendricks county who have left their native 
county for wider fields is Amos D. McCormick, who is at present the man- 
ager of the Capitol Lumber Company yards Number Two, of Indianapolis. 
He is one of those strong, self-reliant and determined characters who are 
occasionally met with and who are of such a distinct type as to seem to be 
born leaders. Not that Mr. McCormick courts that distinction, for he is en- 
tirelv unassuming, but his force of character and his zeal and energy in what- 
e\er he undertakes naturally places him at the head of the crowed. He has 
held a number of positions and wherever he has been he has rendered faith- 
ful and efficient service to those who employed him. His life has been one 
of unceasing industry. The perseverance and the systematic and honorable 
methods he has followed have not only won for him the confidence of his 
employers, but of his fellow citizens as well. He is a man whom Hendricks 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 047 

county may be justly proud to claim and it is safe to say that he is just as 

proud of his home county. c^ ^. r- • i. 

Amos D McCormick, the son of xMr. and Mrs. Aquilla S. McCormick, 
was born February 24, 1870, northeast of Cartersburg, Hendricks county 
Indiana He remained at home until eighteen years of age and then started 
to clerk in the store of Pruitt Brothers at Cartersburg, where he remained for 
three or four years. He then went to work in the store of W. T. Jordan at 
Pittsboro where he remained until he was twenty-six years of age. He then 
went into the poultry business at Cartersburg and followed this for the next 
two years, when he went to farming on the farm where he was born. He 
was ambitious, however, to get into the business world and when the oppor- 
tunity presented itself he left the farm and took a position with a lumber 
company On March i, 1901, he went to Linton and took a position with the 
Greer-Wilkmson Lumber Company, the largest lumber company in Indiana, 
having at that time forty yards throughout the state. He remained with this 
companv a little more than two years and then went into the employ ot the 
New Union Lumber Company at the same place as manager of their yards. 
From there he went to Indianapolis in the winter of 1906 and became esti- 
mator for the Burnett-Lewis Lumber Yards Company. Two years later he 
resigned his position and then spent a year at Los Angeles, California, with 
the Wells Fargo Express Company, but his love for the lumber business drew 
him back into that again and in 1908 he returned to Indiana and became 
manager of the New Union Lumber Company at Jasonville. He continued 
there until August 20, 191 L when he took his present position as manager of 
the Capitol Lumber Company, yard Number Two at Forty-eighth street and 
Monon railroad m Indianapolis. He has a thorough knowledge of the lum- 
ber business in all its details and is rapidly pushing to the front as a capable 
man in that line of business. 

Mr McCormick was married in 1895 to Kate Brent, the daughter of 
George and Marion (McVay) Brent. His wife was born on the old Brent 
homestead, one and one-half miles southwest of Pittsboro. Her father was 
born on a farm near Campbellsburg, Kentucky, about 1844 the son of San- 
ford Brent and wife. He came to Hendricks county while a young man and 
was married to Marion McVay, the daughter of Molar and Mary (Brad- 
shaw) McVav The Bradshaws were early pioneers of this county. George 
Brent was a farmer all of his life, and died March 16, 1879, at the early age 
of thirty-five. After his death his widow married Dr. J. S. French, of Craw- 
fordsville and has lived in Pittsboro ever since. Mr. and Mrs. McCormick 



°48 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

have one son. Edwin, born February 2, 1901. They still own the farm whirh 
was entered by Mr. McCormick's grandfather 

Mr. and Mrs. McCormick are members of the Third Christian church 
of Ind,anapohs and hberal supporters of that denomination. Mr. McCorm ck 
.s a man of excellent parts and by his strong and vigorous personamv has 
won success in his chosen field. He thoroughly understand e^ 'se o 
the lumber busmess and because of this fact he is a verv valuable man to the 
company wh.ch employs him. He is a wide reader and a dos observer o 
-en. and enjoys a large acquaintance among the business men of Ind anapo 

hich m^er t°he'"t - '■'f ^"^ ^"" '™'^ ''' ^"•^■»" ^ ^" — - 
^^ men make tor the welfare of his community, and for this reason ;. i 

servedly held in high regard by all who know hfm. '" '^" 



OBED UNDERWOOD. 



In placing Obed Underwood in the front rank of the farmers of Hen 
dr,cks county, simple justice is done to a biographical fact Tvers^ l rec" 
ogmzed by all who are familiar with his history', 'a man of sZd u^ ^t" 
Mse discretion, thorough agricultural knowledge and business ab litv^f a 
h.gh order, he has managed his affairs with splLdid success! ha so L 
pressed h,s individuality u,x>n the community as to gain recognition amrg 
the leading citizens and public-spirited men of affairs ^ 

Obed Underwood, the son of William and Harriett (West) Underwood 
was born at Winchester, this county, on September 31, 854 W."ltm Un 

parents came to Hendricks county, Indiana, where they entered a lar^^e 
amount of government land in Marion township, and here they spent the re 
mamder of their lives, rearing a family of seven children, Wmfam'the father" 
of Obed. being the eldest child : Franklin, Charlotte Elizaber' rl 

rrtdtarH::t"w:t "7 """™°" - -- "-sIL^tTd 
and Pom Zw I 'J "'' ' ?'"' °' '''="'"*y' *^ '^^"ghter of Isaac 
Her fath r T w' ''™' '° " ~""'-" ''^'" ^ *''<^ ^'"^ her parents 

dr ek o m^^^f" r '"::r'' *" °"^ °^ "^-^ ^^'^ P'™-" °f Hen. 
Alexander and Sarah West. He had no educational advanta..es in his vouth 
and w-as early compelled to earn his own living. He marri:d in K^nCy 




OBED UNDERWOOD 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 649 

and his wife, Polly, the daughter of George Turner, came to Indiana in 1827 
with her parents and settled in the woods one mile south of New Winchester, 
where they entered one hundred and sixty acres of land from the govern- 
ment. Here they lived until the death of Mr. Turner, who lived to the ad- 
vanced age of ninety-four years, and died on August 29, 1898, having lived in 
this county seventy years. He began life with nothing whatever, and by hard 
work, honesty and indomitable courage, succeeded in clearing up a farm af 
two hundred and sixty-five acres. He was a member of the Missionary Bap- 
tist church, a man noted for his honesty and integrity and was held in the 
highest esteem by every one. His wife died December 15, 1887. 

After his marriage William Underwood, the father of Obed, began life 
on his own account as a farmer and so successful was he that at the time of 
his death he had six hundred acres of land in the county. He died September 
I, 1875, at the age of fifty-one. He was a member of the Independent Order 
of Odd Fellows. His wife died April 7, 1912, on her eighty-fourth birth- 
day. To Mr. and Mrs. William Underwood were born six children : John 
F., who lives in Danville; William I. and Robert L., of New Winchester; 
Mary Ellen and Angeline, deceased, and Obed, of whom this narrative speaks. 

Obed Underwood was reared in this county, spent his early days in the 
school room, and upon reaching manhood was married to Louie Bousman, 
the daughter of John and Mary (Haynes) Bousman, of Marion township. 
Her parents came from Clinton county. Ohio, about 1854 and located in 
Marion township, this county. Mr. Bousman was a carpenter by trade, al- 
though after he came to this township he bought a farm and continued farm- 
ing and carpentering. In 1879 the Bousman family bought property in Dan- 
ville, where they lived the remainder of Mr. Bousman's life, his death oc- 
curring February 5, 1904. He was a member of the Independent Order of 
Odd Fellows, w^hile he and his wife belonged to the Christian church. Mrs. 
Bousman is now living with Mr. and Mrs. Underwood at New Winchester. 
After his marriage, Mr. Underwood started farming for himself and became 
the owner of various farms in Marion township. In September, 19 12, he 
retired from the active management of his farm and moved to New Win- 
chester, where he is living a life of ease and comfort. In politics he is a 
Democrat and as a representative of his party has served as township trus- 
tee on two different occasions, being elected the first time in 1900 and again in 
1904. He was an able and efficient official and served his party and the citi- 
zens of his county, irrespective of their political faith, equally well. 

Mr. Underwood has two daughters. Maude and Jessie. Maude is the 
wife of Arthur Carter and lives in Clay township; Jessie is the wife of Olson 



650 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Hunt and lives in the eastern part of Marion township, and has one daughter, 
Marvel. Mr. and Mrs. Underwood are faithful and consistent members of 
the Missionary Baptist church and are interested in the various activities of 
that denomination. Mr. Underwood is a man who is well known through- 
out the community and is highly esteemed by all who know him, since he 
has for many years been a potent factor in the civic life of the community. 



NATHAN ADDISON TUCKER. 

Hendricks county is indebted, perhaps, to the Tucker family as much 
as to any other for its wondrous transformation to one of the choicest sec- 
tions of the Hoosier state, for members of this family have been leaders in 
agricultural, industrial and civic affairs since the early days. Each, with a 
fidelity to duty and a persistency of purpose peculiar to that class of men 
who takes the lead in large affairs, has performed well his duty in all the 
relations of life, and while advancing their own interests they have not been 
unmindful of the general welfare of their fellow citizens. Thus they right- 
fully deserve an honored place in the history of this locality. 

Nathan A. Tucker, the son of Dandridge and Catherine (Davis) Tucker, 
was born four miles northeast of North Salem, November 27, 1853. The 
reader is referred to the history of Dandridge Tucker, elsewhere in this 
volume, for a complete family genealogy of the Tucker family. 

Nathan A. Tucker was reared on his father's farm and after taking the 
course in the local schools he attended Valparaiso University and Wabash 
College. Upon his return from college he worked with his father on the 
farm until his marriage. 

Mr. Tucker was married September 15, 1880, to Mary E. Carriger, 
of Boone county, Indiana, the daughter of George and Sarah (George) Car- 
riger, who came from Tennessee to Indiana in 1840 and located in Boone 
county. Upon his marriage, in 1880, Mr. Tucker started farming on eighty 
acres which was given him by his father, and he has proved to be a very suc- 
cessful farmer, since he has by his own energy and persistence added to his 
farm from time to time until he now has two hundred and eighty acres of 
excellent farming land in the county. He has his farm highly improved in 
every way and it presents a striking appearance to the passerby. His home 
is placed back from the road and is approached by a gravel roadway, Imed 
on both Fides with l)eautiful shade trees at regular intervals. The house is 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 65 1 

placed upon an eminence, which renders it conspicuous in all directions and 
from which an excellent view may be had all over his farm. He has good 
barns, outbuildings and all the equipment which characterizes the successful 
farmer of today. He raises all the crops of this latitude and makes it a 
point to feed most of his grain to his own stock, his annual sale of hogs, 
cattle and sheep adding not a little to his yearly income. 

The tirst wife of Mr. Tucker died in November, 1892, and in October, 
1894. he was married to Anna M. Spears, who died two years later and Mr. 
Tucker now lives on the old home farm with his children. There is no 
more interesting family of children in Hendricks county than Mr. Tucker's 
and no children in the county who have been given better educational advan- 
tages. He has three sons and three daughters and all of them have gradu- 
ated from the North Salem high school, while the three sons are all DePauw 
University men. The sons are Lee. Carl A., and George D., while the daugh- 
ters are Sarah Catherine, Etta Agnes, and Louisa ].. the last named being 
the only one of the six children married. She is the wife of Logan R. Owen 
and lives one and one-half miles north of North Salem. Agnes and Lee 
are both teaching at North Salem, and all of the children, except the niar- 
ried daughter, are living W'ith their father. 

Mr. Tucker is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, and he and 
his children are members of the Methodist Episcopal church. His home 
is one where genuine hospitality always manifests itself, and he is justly 
proud of his fine children, who have all prepared themselves for useful 
members of society. 



PETER GREELY 



The life history of Peter Greely, one of the well known and highly es- 
teemed citizens of Hendricks county, Lidiana, shows what industry, gooa 
habits and stanch citizenship will accomplish in the battle for success in life. 
His record shows duties well and conscientiously performed in all the rela- 
tions of life. Born on a foreign soil and coming to this county many years 
ago. he has grown into the life of his adopted country and has played his 
part in the drama of civilization. He has ever been an a-dvocate of whole- 
some living and has always stood for the highest and best interests of the 
community in which he has so long resided and which has been honored 
by his citizenship. 

Peter Greelv was born in 1840 in county Galway, Ireland, the son of 



652 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

John and Bridget (Eagan) Greely, the mother dying when Peter was a child 
of three years. The subject grew up in Ireland, remaining on his native soil 
until twenty-four years of age, when, in 1864, in company with thirteen 
other young men and girls, he set out to try his fortune in the new world. 
They had a delightful voyage and landed in New York, where all found 
friends. Peter had a sister in this county, Mrs. Margaret Corliss, who had 
come to America in i860, locating near Brownsburg and had married a year 
later. Mr. Greely had owned a farm in Ireland and was well versed in the 
secrets of husbandry and upon reaching his sister's home he found that her 
husband owned a farm of forty acres in Brown township, later moving to 
Lincoln township, where he had one hundred acres. Thus it was but natural 
that Mr. Greely should turn to the work with which he was familiar, and he 
worked among the farmers until in 1869, when he purchased sixty-eight 
acres one mile northeast of Brownsburg. At the time he bought this land 
it was covered with dense thickets and timber and was very swampy, the 
thickets so dense in some places one could scarcely see ten feet ahead. There 
were but ten acres cleared and the only building was an old log house. He 
proceeded to clear this land, drain and tile it and has today some of the 
finest land in the county, land for which he has refused two hundred dollars 
per acre. He now has one hundred and forty acres in all. In 1908 his home 
burned, and he then erected the handsome and commodious dwelling in 
which the family now resides. 

In 1870 Mr. Greely was united in marriage with Margaret Dugan, who 
was born in county Galway, Ireland, the daughter of Patrick and Nora (Du- 
gan) Dugan. She and Mr. Greely were acquainted in Ireland and she came 
to America soon after Mr. Greely did, finding friends in Indianapolis and 
in her earlier days here worked in farm homes near the city. To their union 
were born ten children and throughout the years Mrs. Greely proved herself 
to be a most devoted wife and mother and a woman highly respected by 
friends and neighbors. Her death occurred at midnight on March i, 19 10. 
John, the eldest son, married Mrs. Isa (Ulry) Maloney, a widow, and they 
live two miles northeast of the subject. Nora is the wife of Thomas O'Con- 
nell and resides in Indianapolis. Her husband is foreman for the Grocers' 
Baking Company. They have two children, Leo and Catherine. Bridget 
Delia is unmarried and makes her home in Indianapolis. Michael is teaching 
school at Paoli, this state. Margaret is a stenographer in Indianapolis. Pat- 
rick is on the farm with his father, and Kate also remains at home. Nellie 
is an instructor in the high school at Sunman, Indiana, having attended both 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 653 

Butler College, Indianapolis, and the State University at Bloomington. Mary 
lived to the age of twenty-two years and Kate died when three years old. 

The entire family are devout members of the Roman Catholic church. 
When a youth in Ireland, Mr. Greely received an excellent education, being 
versed in Latin, German and the Gaelic tongues, as well as many other sub- 
jects. He is an unusually well read man and exceedingly well versed in the 
Bible and history pertaining to it. He is a man of high ideals and strong 
convictions and throughout his life has lived according to his ideas of the 
essential qualifications of perfect manhood. He is a man of influence among 
hi.- neighbors and highly respected by all. 



lAMES B. DOOLEY. 



The gentleman whose biographical record is here given was for a long 
lapse of years one of the substantial farmers and honored citizens of Hen- 
dricks county. His well-directed efforts in the practical affairs of life, his 
capable management of his business interests and his sound judgment have 
brought him a fair measure of prosperity, and his life demonstrates what 
may be accomplished by the man of energy and ambition who is not afraid 
to work and has the perseverance to continue his labors in the face of seem- 
ingly discouraging circumstances. As a native son of Hendricks county he 
patriotically served his country during our great Civil War, and in all the re- 
lations of life he has commanded the respect and confidence of those with 
whom he has been brought in contact. 

James B. Dooley was born in 1837, about one mile west of Danville, 
Hendricks county, Indiana. He is a son of Moses and Elizabeth (Bohan- 
nan) Dooley. Moses Dooley was born in Virginia in 1799, and at the age 
of thirteen years came to the state of Kentucky with his mother, his father 
having died in Virginia. The mother and son lived in Shelby county, Ken- 
tucky, and there Moses grew to manhood and married Elizabeth Bohannan, 
a native of that state. In pioneer days Moses Dooley and his wife came to 
Danville, Hendricks county, Indiana. That was a primitive day, and he as- 
sisted in the clearing of timber from the court house yard in Danville. Their 
eldest child, Martha J., was born in Kentucky, and their other children were 
born in Hendricks county. Moses Dooley's first farm was one mile west of 
Danville, but later he moved to a farm of one hundred and sixty acres situ- 
ated between Belleville and Clayton. He met with pecuniary misfortune by 



654 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

^oiiii^ security for a friend and crediting others, which caused him to lose his 
farm, lie had only three hundred and fifty dollars left, but later succeeded 
in Ijuving another farm six miles northwest of Danville, in Marion township, 
where his son, James B., the immediate subject of this sketch, grew to 
manhood. 

James B. Dooley was married in i860 to Mary Buntin, daughter of 
Harvey Buntin and a sister of John H. Buntin, of North Salem, Hendricks 
county. In August, 1862, he enlisted in Company H of the Ninety-ninth In- 
diana \^olunteer Infantry, which was assigned to the Army of the Tennessee 
under General Logan and General Sherman. Major J. B. Homan, of Dan- 
ville, was captain of this company and Rev. D. R. Lucas Avas chaplain. Mr. 
Dooley participated in some of the important battles of the war, among them 
being the battles of Dalton, Resaca, Atlanta, and many other engagements in- 
cidental to the march to Atlanta. With his company he accompanied Sherman 
to the sea, and was near Raleigh, North Carolina, when Johnson surrendered 
to General Sherman. The Ninet}^-ninth Regiment did as much marching as anv 
in the service. Before going on the Atlanta campaign it saw much hard 
service at Haines Bluff during the siege of Vicksburg. They also partici- 
pated in the battle of Mission Ridge and many other noted engagements. 
From Raleigh the horses and mules and artillery were loaded on cars and 
shipped to Washington, and the infantry was obliged to walk. They marched 
through Petersburg, Richmond and on to Washington, where they partici- 
pated in the Grand Review, Mr. Dooley receiving an honorable discharge at 
the close of the war. 

After the war Mr. Dooley returned to Hendricks county, reaching home 
on June 15th, a late time of the season for a farmer to start work. His 
good wife had saved five hundred dollars from money he had sent her from 
the front, and she, like many other patriotic women of that day, had, by dint 
of hard work in the harvest fields and by other heavy labor, managed well. 
He was thus enabled to 1)uy a small farm, chiefly on credit, which he was 
able to dispose of the following spring at a profit. He then purchased twenty 
acres, paying cash, and this gave him a substantial start. He subsef[uently 
traded this and secured more land in Marion township, and in time became 
the owner of a good sized farm, a part of which, however, was inherited by 
his wife. He and his wife had eighty acres in one tract and he had fifty- 
two acres in another part of the township, where the family home was estab- 
lished. He farmed there until he was unable longer to bear the burden of 
active work. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 655 

To James B. and Mary (Biintin) Dooley were born four children: Hat- 
tie, the first born, is the wife of WilHam Bowman, and they hve at Maple- 
wood, Indiana, and have two children, Ernest and Homer. Minnie is the 
wife of Edward Dow and they live on East Twelfth street, Indianapolis, 
and have six children, Mary, Lora, Ruby, Vivian, Phyllis and Byron. Lizzie 
is the wife of John Crosby, a successful farmer, and they live two miles 
north and three-quarters of a mile east of New Winchester, Indiana, and 
they have two children, Ray and Carlos, both now students at Purdue Uni- 
versity, Lafayette, Indiana. Lester, the youngest by ]\Ir. Dooley's first mar- 
riage, died at the age of eighteen months. The first Mrs. Dooley died in 
1903. She was a faithful member of the Christian church at New Win- 
chester, and a woman of many lovable traits of character. On November 
17, 1908, \[r. Dooley was married to Mrs. Leanah (Buntin) (Walton) 
Wright, a sister of his first wife. She was born about two miles west of 
New Winchester and grew to womanhood in Marion township. In January, 
1861, she married William Walton. One son, Amos McClellan Walton, 
born of this union, died at the age of two years, of diphtheria. Mr. Walton 
and Mr. Dooley enlisted for service in the Civil War at the same time and 
in the same company, and were together until Mr. Walton's death bv typhoid 
fever, near Lagrange, Tennessee, in the winter of 1862-3. Mrs. Walton later 
married John Wright, a native of Marion township, a son of William Wright 
and wife, who were pioneer settlers in Marion township. William Wright 
was in Missouri at the time the Civil War began and came home and en- 
listed in the state militia which was called into service at the time of Mor- 
gan's raid. Mr. \\Tight was a farmer and did a great deal of teaming and 
hauling timber. After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Wright lived for seven 
years in the state of Illinois, when Mr. Wright's health failed and thev then 
returned to Hendricks county, where he died. Mrs. Wright remained a 
widow twenty-four years, during which time she lived on a farm in Marion 
township. There were seven children born of her marriage to WilHam 
Wright. Lena is the wife of Otis Hedge and they live near Valley Mills, and 
they had two children, only one living, Edna, who is the wife of Chester 
Jay. Retta, the second child, died at the age of twenty-one. Oscar Wright 
is a grocer and horseman at Franklin, Indiana. Maude is the wife of Fred 
Sears and they live in the eastern part of Marion township, Hendricks 
county, and have one daughter, Maxine. Donna was the wife of Charles 
Graham and both are deceased, leaving two children, Vesta and Bernice. 
Alice is the wife of Ravmond Rudd and they live at Franklin, Indiana, 



656 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

wlicre Mr. Rudcl is a partner with Oscar Wright in the grocery business; 
they have two daughters, Farrell and Leanah. Homer Wright has been a 
government employe in the IndianapoHs postoffice for past eight years and 
makes his home with his mother and Mr. Dooley. 

James B. Dooley is retired from active life, and on September 15, 1909, 
removed to his present home at No. 1902 Commerce avenue, Indianapolis, 
which they had bought a year before. He and his wife are members of the 
Christian church and he belongs to the Grand Army of the Republic. Po- 
litically, he was formerly a Republican, but is now allied with the Progres- 
sive party. 

Mr. Dooley has always been a loyal and patriotic man, loyal to the laws 
of his country in times of peace and patriotic in defense of the flag in times 
of peril. He was one of six sons, of whom five were soldiers in the Civil 
War, and none of them were in the same regiment. Henry was wounded 
and Arthur was captured and confined in a Confederate prison, but all came 
home alive. 



DANDRIDGE TUCKER. 



Among the families of Hendricks county who have descended from 
Revolutionary stock is the Tucker family, whose history is not only of general 
interest, but of especial interest to the many descendants of that illustrious 
family. 

Dand ridge Tucker, one of the most highly respected and best beloved 
men of Hendricks county of a past generation, was born in Casey county, 
Kentucky, March 3, 1827, and died in Danville, in this county, on June 18, 
1892. He was the only son of Lee and Miranda (Durham) Tucker. Lee 
Tucker was one of the first pioneers in Hendricks county, and was born in 
Bedford county, Virginia, May 4, 1803. Lee Tucker was the eldest son and 
third child of a family of ten children, born to Dandridge and Nancy (Set- 
tles) Tucker, who were also natives of Virginia. The father of Dandridge 
Tucker was William, a soldier of the Revolutionary War for seven years. 

William Tucker, who grew up in Virginia, married Nancy Settles, and 
their son, Lee, became the father in turn of Dandridge, whose history is 
herein presented. 

Lee Tucker, the father of Dandridge. was eight years of age when his 
parents moved from Virginia to Casey county, Kentucky. He was reared 
to manhood on his father's farm in Kentucky and married, on March 7, 1826, 




DANDRIDGE TUCKER 



i 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 657 

Miranda Durham, the daughter of Thomas and Frances (Moss) Durham, 
natives respectively of Virginia and Maryland. Miranda (Durham) Tucker 
was born December i6, 1805, in Mercer county, Kentucky, and after his mar- 
riage he and his wife continued to live on the old homestead farm until the 
fall of 1834. when, on account of his opposition to slavery, he came to In- 
diana, arriving in Eel River township, Hendricks county, on September 12, 
1834. He immediately entered one hundred and sixty acres of unimproved 
land in this township, and afterwards entered one hundred and twenty acres 
more. When Lee Tucker and his family came here in 1834, practically the 
only cleared land in the township was that of Isaac Trotter, all the rest of the 
township being a dense wilderness. In 1826 Mr. Tucker and his wife joined 
the ^Methodist Episcopal church in Kentucky and soon afterwards he was ap- 
pointed class leader. Upon coming to Indiana he organized a church society 
of six members and his own house served as the place of w^orship for some 
time. Later he organized the first Sabbath school in Eel River township, 
which was also held in his own home. He served as class leader, steward 
and trustee in the church until his death. His house was always the ren- 
dezvous of the ministers, and no man in the county ever took a more hearty 
interest in this work than did Lee Tucker. He was an earnest advocate of 
temperance and was the first man in his township to refuse to furnish in- 
toxicants at his log rollings or in the harvest field. Politically, he was an old- 
line Whig, but upon the organization of the Republican party he became 
affiliated with that political institution. He was always among the foremost 
to aid in every good cause. His death occurred June 23, 1884, his wife 
having passed away July 24, 1872. Three children were born to Lee Tucker 
and his wife: Lee Ann, the wife of John Durham; Dandridge, and Francis, 
who died when seven years old. In addition to rearing these children of 
their own, Mr. and Mrs. Lee Tucker reared eight orphan children, all of 
whom grew to be useful members of society. 

Dandridge Tucker, reared by such parents, could not help but be a man 
who would be an ornament to any community. Coming to this county when 
he was seven years of age with his parents, he spent the rest of his life here. 
He assisted his father to clear and improve the home farm and was given the 
meager education which was afforded by the subscription schools of that 
period. He was married on May 5, 1850, to Catherine Davis, who was born 
March 11, 1830, in Montgomery county, Kentucky, the daughter of Nathan 
and Nancy (Kidd) Davis, her parents coming to this county in 1835. To 
Dandridge Tucker and wife were born four children, David Lee and Nathan 
(42) 



658 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

A., whose histories are presented elsewhere in this volume; Miranda F. and 
Robert E. 

After his marriage in 1850 Dandridge Tucker settled on the farm where 
his sons, Nathan and David, now reside, and gradually improved the farm 
until it was as productive as any in the county. 

Religiously, Mr. Tucker was a loyal and earnest member of the Metho- 
dist Episcopal church and his wife of the Christian church. His wife died 
February 15, 1883, and some years later he married Jennie Hadley. 

Mr. Tucker was always an active worker in the Republican party, and in 
1847 he was appointed township trustee. He was elected treasurer of the 
board and served in that capacity until the new Constitution was adopted in 
1852. He was a great student of Masonry and was one of the oldest repre- 
sentatives of the grand lodge of Indiana. He had taken all of the degrees 
and was one of the first thirty-second-degree Masons in the state. He was a 
man of broad, generous character, a good citizen in every sense of the word 
and a man who was indeed and in truth "four square to every wind that 
blew." 



DAVID LEE TUCKER. 



The Tucker family have played an important part in the history of 
Hendricks county. The history of this family, which has been traced back 
through the Revolutionary War, discloses the fact that its members have al- 
ways played an honorable and prominent part in the affairs of the various 
communities in w'hich they have resided. 

David Lee Tucker, who has lived more than three score years in this 
county, is a man who stands high in the estimation of his neighbors and 
friends, whose interests he has always sought to promote while endeavor- 
ing to advance his own. He is a man of courage, self-reliance and of the 
utmost integrity of purpose, with the result that he has earned a full share 
of this world's goods and at the same time has taken a part in the civic life 
of the community in which he lives. He is a son of Dandridge Tucker and 
his birth occurred February 13, 1852, on the farm where he now lives m Eel 
River township, this county. Since the Tucker family history is given in 
the sketch of Dandridge Tucker, the reader is referred to that biography 
for the ancestry of David Lee Tucker. 

David L. Tucker grew up on the farm where he is now living and after 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 659 

completing- his common and high school education in the North Salem schools 
he attended Wabash College. He was married December 31, 1903, to Lillian 
G. Overstreet, the daughter of Aaron and Catherine (Elder) Overstreet. 
Aaron Overstreet, the son of James and Susan Overstreet, was born in Casey 
county, Kentucky, January 19, 1826. He was reared in Kentucky, and on 
December 24, 1850. married Catherine Ann Elder, and two years later came 
to Hendricks county, Indiana, and after living in several different parts oi 
the county he settled in Union township. In August, 1862, he enlisted for 
service in the Union army in Company G, Ninety-ninth Regiment Indiana 
A'olunteer Infantry, and served during the remainder of the war. He was 
in the Ijattles of Jacksonville, Chattanooga, Vicksburg, all of the battles of 
the Atlanta campaign, and was with Sherman on his march northward from 
Savannah to the tinal surrender at Guilford court house in the spring of 
1865, and in August of that year he was mustered out of the service, when 
he immediately returned to this county, where he lived as a farmer until 
his death, which occurred June 22, 19 10. To Mr. and Mrs. Overstreet were 
born twelve children. Both Mr. and Mrs. Overstreet were active members 
of the Christian church, and, fraternally, Mr. Overstreet was a member of 
the Free and Accepted Masons and also of the Grand Army of the Republic. 
He was an honest, industrious man who had great faith in the better side of 
human life. He was truthful and optimistic to a marked degree and not 
only mild when life looked dark and gloomy, but believed that the man who 
is worth while he is the one who will smile when everything goes against him. 
Mr. Tucker has one hundred and sixty acres of well improved land in 
Eel River town.-hip, where he grows all the grains, vegetables and fruits 
common to this section of the state. He devotes a great deal of time and 
attention to live stock and has earned a reputation more than local as a cattle 
raiser. He is a man of progressive ideas and tendencies, and by adopting 
modern methods of farming and keeping in touch with the more advanced 
thought on the matter of agriculture and stock raising, has achieved definite 
success. He is a member of the Knights of Pythias at Jamestown, while, 
religiously, he and his wife are both members of the Christian church at 
North Salem. He is a man of keen business discernment, is able to foresee 
with remarkable accuracy the probable outcome of a transaction, and is by 
nature a man always on the alert, progressive, yet scrupulously honest, 
straightforward and unassuming, obliging and courteous, kindly and hospita- 
ble and he numbers his friends only by the limit of his acquaintances, and has 
won the good will and confidence of all with whom he has come in contact. 



66o HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

CHARLES E. KURTZ. 

In the history of Hendricks county, as applying to the agricultural in- 
terest, the name of Charles E. Kurtz occupies a conspicuous place, for 
through a number of years he has been one of the representative farmers of 
Marion township, progressive, enterprising and persevering. Such quali- 
ties always win success, sooner or later, and to Mr. Kurtz they have brought 
a satisfactory reward for his well-directed efforts, and while he has bene- 
fited himself and community in a material w^ay, he has also been an in- 
fluential factor in the educational, political and moral uplift of the com- 
munity favored by his residence. 

Charles E. Kurtz, the son of Henry and Margaret (Logan) (Van- 
nice) Kurtz, was born in Marion township, this county, September lo, 
1867. His father was born in Nelson county, Kentucky, Eebruary 10, 1823, 
and was brought to this state by his parents when six months old. They 
settled in Putnam county on a farm, where he was reared and, with the 
exception of the three years he spent in the army during the Civil war, he 
always resided on the farm. He was married October 9, 1851, to Mar- 
garet Logan Vannice, the daughter of Lawrence and Caroline Vannice, 
after which they settled on a farm, where they continued to live the re- 
mainder of their lives, the farm at the time they took it being an unbroken 
wilderness. At the opening of the Civil War there were four little children 
in the family and when the husband and father enlisted, on August 13, 
1862, to battle for the Union, he left his family not knowing whether he 
would ever see them again. He enlisted in Company G, Ninety-ninth Regi- 
ment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and was assigned to the Army of the 
Tennessee, and, with his regiment, participated in all the campaigns and 
battles of that command until July 22. 1864, when in the great two-days 
battle at Atlanta, he was taken prisoner and confined to the stockade at 
Andersonville. He was in this historic prison from August i. 1864, until 
October 24th of the same year, and during this time he experienced all the 
horrors and privations of that terrible prison pen. From Andersonville he 
was taken to the stockade prison at Florence, South Carolina, and confined 
here for three months. On February 28, 1865, he was exchanged and sent 
north, being almost dead from the hardships he had endured. He arrived 
home March 22, 1865, and, since the war w^as nearly at an end, he did not 
re-enlist. While in the army he wrote home as frequently as the mails 
would permit and his letters give thrilling glimpses of the battles, marches 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 66l 

and incidents through which he was passing. Many a day his loving wife 
took the Httle flock to the forest to gather such wood as she could find for 
fuel. Many a night she put the children to bed, extinguished the light and 
sat with her face pressed against the window, where she saw men pass 
along the road to meet and plot against the government for which her husband 
was risking his life, but he returned and their happy life was resumed and 
they lived for fifty years after this terrible struggle was over. In 1901 they 
celebrated their golden wedding anniversary and in 1911 their sixtieth an- 
niversary, and on these occasions abundant testimony was given of the high 
regard with which this venerable couple was held. To them were born eight 
children: Mrs. Caroline F. Underwood; Jacob L. ; Mrs. Eliza Hadley; 
William H., deceased; Mrs. Jennie Hadley; Charles E., Oscar and Wilbur, 
deceased. Living together for more than sixty years, they were separated 
in death only a few days, Mrs. Kurtz dying on May 28, 1913, and he dying 
a few days later, on June 8, 19 13. 

Charles E. Kurtz received his education in the district schools of his 
township and grew to manhood on the home farm, part of which is now 
owned Idv him. He has operated his present farm since his boyhood days 
and has improved it in every way. The farm is well drained, well fenced, 
and he has a fine home, excellent barns and other outbuildings, the place 
being a model of neatness and convenience. While he raises all of the crops 
peculiar to this latitude, he makes a specialty of stock raising and breeding. 
He breeds Hereford cattle and ships them to all points in the United States. 
He has taken part in many fairs and expositions and has won many prizes 
away from his home county and in different states. He has displayed his 
cattle at the International Stock Show at Chicago and has carried off prizes, 
winning over cattle from all over the United States. He also is a breeder 
and raiser of Spotted Poland China hogs and finds a ready sale for his 
surplus stock. 

Mr. Kurtz was married in 1892 to Alice Henry, daughter of Thomp- 
son and Esteline (Jesse) Henry. Thompson Henry is a native of this 
county and grew to manhood on the old Nathan Tucker farm in Eel River 
township. He and his wife, who also was a native of this county, are now 
living retired at Jamestown. They reared a family of eight children, Jesse, 
George H., Oliver, Alice, Effie. Mattie, Reddie G., deceased, and one who 
died in infancy. 

Mr. and Mrs. Kurtz have four children, all of whom are at home, 
Ralph, Verla P., Henry H. and Charles E. Mr. Kurtz is a member of the 



662 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Free and Accepted Masons and the Knights of Pythias at North Salem, 
and also is a member of the Royal Arch Masons at Danville. He is a Re- 
publican in politics and has always taken a more or less active part in local 
political affairs. He has been a member of the Hendricks county council 
and in that capacity has stood for all measures which promise to better the 
condition of the county. He and the members of his family are adherents 
of the Presbyterian church at New Winchester and are generous contribu- 
tors to its maintenance. Mr. Kurtz has been a hard worker all of his life 
and is richly deserving of the success which has come to him. On his fine 
farm of two hundred and eighty acres he has the opportunity to show what 
a progressive farmer can accomplish and it needs but a glance over his well- 
tilled fields to show that he has taken advantage of the opportunity. Such 
men are welcomed in every community, and the greater the number of this 
class the better it is for the community, for it is people who live in any 
locality which really make it what it is. Therefore, Mr. Kurtz can be justly 
regarded as one of the best representative men of Hendricks county today. 



MARTIN HESSION. 



The history of the Hoosier state is not an ancient one. It is the record 
of the steady growth of a community planted in the wilderness in the last 
century and reaching its magnitude of today without other aids than those 
of continued industry. Each county has its share in the story, and every 
county can lay claim to some incident or transaction which goes to make 
up the history of the commonwealth. After all, the history of a state is 
but a record of the doings of its people, among whom the pioneers and the 
sturdy descendants occupy places of no secondary importance. The story 
of the plain common people who constitute the moral bone and sinew of the 
state should ever attract the attention and prove of interest to all true lovers 
of their kind. In the life story of the subject of this sketch there are no 
striking chapters or startling incidents, but it is merely the record of a life 
true to its highest ideals and fraught with much that should stimulate the 
youth just starting in the world as an independent factor. 

Martin Hession, the subject of this review, was a native of Ireland, 
born in county Gal way, and about the year 1834, when fourteen or fifteen 
years of age. he came unaccompanied to America. His mother had died 
previous to his coming, and some time after he had established himself in 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 663 

the new land his father joined him. He was the son of Daniel and Sarah 
Hession and was one of a family of four children, the others being Charles, 
Michael and Ellen. Mr. Hession first set foot in the new world at New 
Orleans, after a long and tedious journey in the sail boats of that day, and 
remained there for about two months before coming to Indiana. After 
arriving in Indiana, he found friends in both Marion and Hendricks coun- 
ties and worked out among them on their farms at day labor. In this 
manner he employed himself for eight or nine years, when he felt able to 
invest in a farm for himself and purchased a forty-acre tract in the eastern 
portion of Brown township, this county. He lived there for three or four 
years, when he sold it and bought a forty-acre farm in Boone county. 
There he resided for two years, when he traded that farm to a brother tor 
forty acres in Brown township, when he again became a citizen of Hen- 
dricks county, and has since remained here. Mr. Hession has carried on 
general farming and kindred interests and, by reason of his unfailing energy 
and tireless efforts, he has prospered. The forty acres secured from his 
brother has formed the nucleus for his present holdings, comprising three 
hundred and fifteen acres of as fine land as the county can boast, and the 
reputation of Hendricks county for excellent soil is well known. 

On January 4, i860, Mr. Hession was united in marriage with Mary 
Hagon, who was born in September, 1840, in county Galway, Ireland. Her 
parents died in the old country when she was young and when but fourteen 
years of age she journeyed to the United States alone, landing at New 
Orleans and coming directly to Marion county, this state, where three of 
her brothers and one sister were already settled. These were John, Michael, 
Martin and Kate. After arriving at the home of her brothers she went out 
as a domestic to service on various farms in Marion county and in this way 
made her own way until the time of her marriage. Her parents were James 
and Bridget Reddington. To the union of Martin and Mary (Hagon) Hes- 
sion have been born nine children, two of which have passed away. The 
others are : James, who married Belle Sharkey and resides on a farm about 
one mile north of the subject; Sarah is the wife of Martin Hession and 
lives on a farm in Middle township, this county; Delia married Darby 
Mulrine and lives in Indianapolis. Her husband is employed by Kingan & 
Company, Limited. They have two children, Nora and Martin. Martin F. 
married Nellie King, of Indianapolis, and they reside just east of the sub- 
ject's home; Daniel, John and Mary remain at home; they are the parents 
of three children, namely: Elizabeth, Mary and Martha. Charles died 



664 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

when thirty-three years and six months of age and a Httle daughter, Julia, 
died in infancy. The family is considered one of the very best in the com- 
munity and has a host of friends. The atmosphere of the home is thor- 
oughly hospitable and both friends and strangers find appropriate welcome 
there. Mr. Hession, after a strenuous career, has practically retired from 
active duties and is enjoying the fruits of many years of unceasing labor. 
There is much that is commendable in his life's record, much that might 
well be an inspiration to young men with life before them and without in- 
fluential friends to come to their aid. By his own effort and right princi- 
ples of living he has not only won for himself an enviable competency for 
his declining" years, but has so conducted his a.^Tairs with his fellow men 
as to win for himself the reputation of one absolutely trustworthy and 
honorable in his business dealings, and worthy in every respect of the warm- 
est personal friendship. The entire family are communicants of the Roman 
Catholic church and give lilDcrally of their substance to its support. 



WILLIAM S. DICKERSON. 

Among the earnest men whose enterprise and depth of character have 
gained a prominent place in the community and the respect and confidence 
of his fellow citizens is the honored subject of this sketch. A leading 
farmer and stock raiser of the township in which he resides and a man of 
decided views and laudable ambitions, his influence has ever been exerted 
for the advancement of his kind, and in the vocation to which his energies 
are devoted he ranks among the representative men of the country. 

William S. Dickerson, the son of Ennis and Anna (Ross) Dickerson, 
was JDorn Fd^ruary 24, 1865, in Marion township, Hendricks county, In- 
diana. His father was a native of Virginia, and came to this state with 
his parents. Andrew R. and Mahila (Dodd) Dickerson, when but a small 
boy. They settled in Marion township about three and one-half miles 
north of New Winchester. Here Andrew R. Dickerson bought a forty- 
acre farm which had been entered by Paul Faught, and is known as the 
old Dickerson homestead. Ennis Dickerson was a member of the Friends 
church and a farmer in this county until his death, in 1899. He was an 
invalid most of his life, but in spite of this affliction he was a hard worker 
and successful in life. His wife, Anna Ross, was a native of Kentucky 
and came to this county with her parents when she was a small child. She 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 665 

is now seventy-four years of age and. is living in Indianapolis. Mr. and 
Mrs. Ennis Dickerson were the parents of six children: John Calvin, de- 
ceased; William S., whose history is herein set forth; Mrs. Eva E. Hadley; 
James Ora; Frank O. and Ella, who died at the age of eight. 

William S. Dickerson spent his boyhood days on the farm, and lived 
with his parents until he was twelve years of age in Marion township, i'hey 
then removed to Center township, near Mill Creek, where he remained until 
he was nineteen years of age. returning to care for his grandmother, with 
whom he lived until his marriage. He moved on his present farm of fifty- 
three acres in 1905, and has improved his farm until it presents a very at- 
tractive appearance in every way, built fences, put up buildings and a neat 
country home. 

Mr. Dickerson was married January 30, 1887, to Lizzie Faught, the 
daughter of Henry H. and Martha J. (Armstrong) Faught. Henry 
H. Faught was born August 23, 1841, in this county, the son of George 
Washington and Annie Jane (Hayes) Faught. George Faught was reared 
in this township, being born in 1818, the son of Paul and Elizabeth (Liszt) 
Faught. Paul Faught was one of the first settlers to enter land in this 
county. His wife, Elizabeth, died April 26, i860, and he died one month 
later, Mav 26, i860. Their son, George W., lived and died in the same 
locality and was a farmer all of his life, dying June 26, 1880. His wife, 
Annie Jane, died September 4. 1874. Henry H., the son of Mrs. Faught, 
was married August 27, 1863, to Martha J. Armstrong, the daughter of 
William and Mary Ann (Ross) Armstrong. William Armstrong was born 
in 1818 in Shelby county, Kentucky, the son of Levi and Susan (Johnson) 
Armstrong. Levi was born February 27, 1791, and his wife in 1793. Levi 
was a son of George, born in 1763, and Sarah Armstrong, born in 1766. 
The Armstrong family has traced their ancestry back to a much earlier date 
in the state of New York. They came to Kentucky in wagons and have 
lived in that state for several generations. William Armstrong grew up 
in Kentucky and in 1837 married Mary Ann Ross, a native of Kentucky. 
Soon after marriage they came to Indiana and settled near New Winches- 
ter, where they lived and died. His first wife, the mother of Mrs. Faught, 
died in 1875. In 1876 he married Amanda Harris, and died July 15, 
1899, at the age of eighty-one, having spent a very busy and useful life. 
After Henry H. Faught was married he moved to Edgar county. Illinois, 
where he remained for five years. He then came back to Marion town- 
ship, Hendricks county, and located two miles north of New Winchester 



666 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

on a farm, which belonged to his father. After his father's death, Mr. 
Fanght bought his brother's interest in the farm, thus becoming the owner 
of one hundred and twenty acres. He Hved here the rest of his Hfe, farm- 
ing and trading in Hve stock. He was a Mason and both he and his wife 
were members of the Christian church, although at the time of their mar- 
riage she was a member of the Baptist church. He died March 30, 1911, 
after nearly half a century of married life. He was an earnest believer in 
the faith of the Gospel and his life was one devoted to making friefids and 
keeping them. Three children were born to Mr. and Mrs. H. H. Faught : 
George W., a clothing merchant of Indianapolis, who married Mrs. Cather- 
ine (Morris) Adams; they have one child, Cecil. Dora May, the deceased 
wife of John C. Himes of Ladoga. She left one son, Fred C, who was only 
nine months old at the time of his mother's death. He was reared by Mr. 
and Mrs. Faught and has been a member of the home ever since. Lizzie 
Etta is the wife of W. S. Dickerson and has two children, Harry B., born 
February 8, 1890, and Lester F., born January 26, 1895. 

Harry B., the oldest son of Mr. and Mrs. Dickerson, married Kate 
Christie July 2, 191 1, and is a farmer in Putnam county. Lester is still at 
home w^ith his parents. Mr. Dickerson is a Democrat, but is not active in 
politics. His wife is a member of the Christian church at New Winchester, 
Indiana. Mr. Dickerson is liberal in his views and charitable to the faults 
of his neighbors. He has advanced ideas on farming and does not hestitate 
to put them into operation, with the result that he is rightly regarded as one 
of the representative farmers of this county. 



FRED ALBERT HAYS. 



The subject of this review as one of the most enterprising of our 
younger generation of farmers in Hendricks county, who has believed from 
the outset of his career that the "wisdom of yesterday is the folly of today," 
and that while the methods of our grandfathers in tilling the soil were all 
right in their day, yet in the twentieth century we are compelled to adopt 
new methods and farm along different lines, in view of the fact that condi- 
tions of climate, soil, grains, etc., have changed since the days of the pio- 
neers. He has been a close observer of modern methods and is a student 
at all times of whatever pertains to his chosen life work, and he has tliefe- 
fore met with encouraging success all along the line, and, judging from 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 66/ 

his past record, he will undoubtedly achieve much in the future years and 
take his place among the leading agriculturists of a community noted for 
its fine farms and adroit husbandmen. 

Fred Albert Hays, the son of James and Mary (Kelley) Hays, was 
born in jMarion township, Hendricks county, Indiana, June 3, 1876. His 
father was born in this township March 10, 1836, the son of John ana 
Catherine (Munday) Hays. John Hays was a native of Virginia and was 
a son of William and Mary Hays. When John was about eight years of 
age his parents moved to Mercer county, Kentucky, and there he grew up 
and married Catherine Munday, who was a native of Mercer county, the 
daughter of Woodson and Nancy Munday. In 1829 John Hays and his 
wife came to Hendricks county, Indiana, and entered land not far from 
New Winchester, where they lived, reared their family and there they 
both died. John Hays was a life-long farmer and owned between three 
and four hundred acres of land at the time of his death, James Hays, the 
father of Fred Albert, is one of nine children, only two others being alive at 
the present time, Harvey Hays, of New Winchester, and John Thomas 
Hays, who lives two miles southwest of Danville, in Center township. 

James Hays was married twice, his first wife being Mary Kelley, a 
native of this county and the sister of his second wife. After his marriage 
on March 24, 1857, he began farming on the place where he is still living. 
At that time the land was heavily timbered and he had to clear off a plot 
of ground large enough to build his cabin, a task of no small magnitude in 
those days. On this farm he has built three houses, his first two having 
been destroyed by fire. To his first marriage there were born four chil- 
dren : Annie Belle, the w'ife of James Clark, of Danville, died in 1898, 
leaving three children, Mabel, Rennice and Carlos; Hattie lives south of 
New Winchester, where she owns a farm; Frank, who married Ida Alyrtle 
Sears, the daughter of Jeptha and Emily (Hamrick) Sears, lives on a farm 
adjoining his father's place on the east. He has a farm of one hundred and 
twenty-seven acres; the youngest child of this first marriage is Fred Albert, 
whose history is herewith outlined. After the death of his first wife, in 
1882, James Hays married Mrs. Margaret (Kelley) Rose in 1889, who was 
a sister of the first Mrs. James Hays. She is the mother of William M. 
Rose, of Eel River township, this county, whose history will be found else- 
where in this volume. 

Fred Albert Hays spent his early days on his father's farm, and has 
been a tiller of the soil all his life. He moved to his present farm in March, 



668 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

1902, and now has one hundred and twenty acres of land which he operates 
in an up-to-date manner. In addition to his general farming he makes a 
specialty of buying, feeding and selling cattle. 

Mr. Hays was married June 2, 1901, to Emma L. Hardwick, the 
daughter of Warren and Nancy (Graham) Hardwick. Warren Hardwick 
was born September 25, 1839, in Marion township, this county. He was 
the son of Silas and Rhoda (Cook) Hardwick. Silas Hardwick was born 
about 1809, in Montgomery county, Kentucky, and moved to Shelby county, 
in the same state, when a child, where he remained until 1830. In 1832 he 
came to Hendricks county, Indiana, with his parents, Charles and Eliza- 
beth Hardwick. Charles Hardwick entered one hundred and sixty acres of 
government land in Center township, Hendricks county, and one hundred 
and sixty acres in Marion township. Both Charles and his son, Silas, were 
blacksmiths and started the first shop in Danville. Silas Hardwick was an 
all-around mechanic, a good carpenter and an excellent cabinet-maker and 
in addition was a farmer of more than ordinary ability. Warren Hardwick 
grew up on the home farm and received his education in the old academy 
at Danville. He taught school for several terms in Indiana, Illinois and 
Iowa, and was married March 16, 1871, to Nancy G. Graham, the daugh- 
ter of Young W. and Emily (Harris) Graham. Mr. Graham came from 
Mercer county, Kentucky, in November, 1840, and bought two hundred 
acres of school land in section 16, of Marion township, this county, and 
here his death occurred on April 22, 1846, at the age of thirty-five years, 
his wife surviving him for forty years, her death occurring on April 14, 
1886. Warren Hardwick spent the rest of his life in Marion township, 
where he followed the occupation of a farmer and stock raiser. He be- 
came the owner of several fine farms and owned nine hundred acres in 
Marion township. Mr. and Mrs. Hardwick reared a large family of eight 
children, one of whom died in infancy ; the other seven are still living and 
are as follows: Glenn; Silas; Emily L., the wife of Mr. Hays; Everett 
W. ; Harry J.; Florence R., the wife of Fred Creech, and Bessie E. In 
the fall of 1907 Mr. Hardwick bought a fine residence on the Danville and 
North Salem road, where he lived until his death, which occurred May 6, 
1909. Mrs. Hardwick and all her children except the two married daugh- 
ters still reside at this home. Mr. and Mrs. Fred Hays have a daughter. 
Irene, born May 8, 1902. 

Mr. Hays is a Democrat in politics, but has never been active in the 
affairs of his party. He is interested in all public enterprises and takes a 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 



669 



kindly interest in the welfare of his fellow citizens. His wife is a member 
of the Missionary Baptist church at New Winchester and is a woman of 
refinement and culture who adds grace and charm to the home. Mr. Hays 
is a congenial man and one who is well liked by eyery one. He and his 
wife are prominent in the best social circles of their community and still 
have many years of usefulness before them. 



WARREN HARDWICK. 



The Hardwick family have been in Hendricks county since 1832 and 
from the day that the first representatiye of the family arrived in the county 
until the present time they have played an important part in its history. 
They belong to that early group of pioneers who paved the way for the 
present civilization of the county and in all of these years they have always 
taken a leading part in promoting public enterprises which affected the weal 

of their community. . 

The Hardwicks trace their ancestry back to the latter part of the 
eighteenth century, the first of the family to come into this county being 
Charles Hardwick, who was born during the Revolutionary War. Silas, 
the son of Charles and Elizabeth (Crook) Harwick, was born in 1809 m 
Montgomery county, Kentucky, and came with his parents to this county 
in isV' Charles entered one hundred and sixty acres in Center townslirp 
and he and his son Silas at once opened the first blacksmith shop m the little 
village of Danville, Silas being an excellent mechanic, carpenter and cabinet- 

Silas Hardwick married Rhoda Cook and they were the parents of 
\\'arren, whose interesting career is briefly set forth here. Warren Hard- 
wick was born September 25, 1839. on the New Maysville road m the 
northeastern part of Clarion township. He grew to manhood on the honie 
farm and after completing the course in the common schools of the neigh- 
borhood, he attended the old Methodist Academy in Danville. He tlien 
taught school for several years in Indiana, Illinois and Iowa, and made an 
enviable record as a teacher. _ ^ , 

Mr Hardwick was married March 16. 1871, to Nancy E. Graham, 
the daughter of Young W. and Emily (Harris) Graham. His wife was 
born in^Marion township, her parents having come from Kentucky m the 
fall of 1840. Mr. Graham entered two hundred acres of school land m 



670 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

section 16 in Marion township and died on this farm on April 22, 1846, his 
wife surviving him until April 14, 1886. Mr. and Mrs. Hardwick have 
reared a family of eight children, seven of whom are still living: Glenn; 
Emily L., wife of Fred A. Hays, whose history is given elsewhere in this 
volume; Everett W. ; Harry J.; Florence R., the wife of Fred Creech, whose 
career is presented in another part of this volume, and Bessie. 

After his marriage, Mr. Hardwick retired from teaching and devoted 
the remainder of his life to farming and stock raising. He was very suc- 
cessful and at the time of his death owned several fine farms, aggregating 
more than nine hundred acres. In the fall of 1907 he purchased a fine 
residence on the Danville and North Salem pike and there his widow and' 
all the children except the two married daughters are now living. Mr. 
Hardwick enjoyed his new home only two years, passing away on May 6, 
1909. 

Mr. Hardwick was a man of unusual power and concentration and 
achieved success because he was a skillful manager and a keen observer of 
men and conditions. His career was such that his honesty and integrity 
were never questioned and the result was that he was highly esteemed by 
a large circle of friends and acquaintances in the county. 



GEORGE MONTGOMERY. 

In the year that the United States opened up its second war for inde- 
pendence there w^as born in the state of North Carolina a lad whom destiny 
was to make one of the pioneers of Hendricks county as well as one of its 
wealthiest men. North Carolina has sent its thousands into Indiana, but no 
one of its early emigrants made a more pronounced success in the Hoosier 
state than did the youngest, who uttered his first cry on July 22, 1812. On 
this date there was born in the old state of North Carolina George Mont- 
gomery. His father was Samuel Montgomery and he came from sturdy old 
colonial stock, that could handle the musket and hoe with equal facility. 

The first pictures of young George were filled with the terrible struggle 
which was then being waged between the United States and England, and 
those were stirring events which were happening just one hundred years 
ago. The girl whom he was to marry was born in the same year that Gen- 
eral Jackson won his famous victory at New Orleans, and when Nancy 
Sturman, who was his future wife, was born, on February 27, 181 5, the 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 6/1 

territory of Indiana was just getting ready to apply to Congress for state- 
hood. 

When George IMontgomery and Nancy Montgomery were married they 
at once, if not before, began to plan to go West. It must have taken brave 
hearts to face a trip in those days to the plains of the Mississippi, but our 
grandfathers and grandmothers were never daunted by any fears. So George 
and Nancy talked it over with his people and her father and mother with 
the result that in the spring they decided to cast their fortunes in the rising 
state of Indiana. They induced the Sturmans to accompany them and the 
little party made their overland journey in the spring of 1837, arriving in 
Hendricks county, Indiana, when nature was at her loveliest. George and 
his young bride settled at Plainfield and the Sturmans located in Marion 
township. For seven years George worked as a farm hand for Jonathan 
Hadley, at the end of which time he felt able to purchase a forty-acre farm 
in Marion township. When they first located at Plainfield they occupied a 
rude log cabin with a dirt floor and a bed which was built into the wall. In 
this cabin their first three children were born and here was where they 
planned how they could buy the little farm. When they moved to the farm 
they put all of their possessions on a small sled and to the casual onlooker 
it would hardly have seemed possible that in a few years this little family 
would be one of the wealthiest in the whole county. But George Mont- 
gomery was a man who knew how to work and, what is more important, 
how to save his money. The result was that in the course of a few years 
he owned seven hundred and forty-five acres of land and was considered one 
of the wealthiest and best known men in the county. It is not every man 
who can start out in life with a wife, thirty-seven cents in cash and a roan 
horse, as did Mr. Montgomery, and accumulate over seven hundred acres 
of land, but that it has been and can be done is strikingly shown in his case. 
He and his good wife also reared a family of eight children: Julia, who 
died September 16, 1907. at the age of seventy-two; Jonathan, who was 
born October 11, 1836, and died June 6, 185 1; Hannah, who was born 
December 31, 1839, and married Taylor Mills; James, who was born 
December 14, 1841, and whose life history is set forth in this volume; Har- 
lan, who was born July 6, 1843, ^^d is now living at Bedford, Iowa; Sam- 
uel Thomas, who was born February 12, 1846, and died June 28, 1869; 
Mary Jane, who was born September 17, 1848, and died August 3, 185 1; 
and Tyra, who was born December 9, 1852. and whose history is presented 
elsewhere in this volume. 



672 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

The mother of these children died April 8, 1881, at the age of sixty- 
six, and the father lived to the ripe old age of ninety-one, not passing away 
until October 26. 1903. They were truly good people and were a blessing 
to the community in which they lived so many years. The day of tliJ?^ log 
cabin is gone, the dirt floor is passed away forever, but the memory of such 
people as these will never die. They fought the good fight and the victory 
is theirs and their children and grandchildren shall always have cause to 
cherish their memorv with filial reverence. 



TYRA MONTGOMERY. 



Descended from an illustrious family, one of the earliest pioneers of 
Hendricks county, Tyra Montgomery is an excellent type of the sturdy 
sons who have placed this county in the foremost ranks among the agricul- 
tural counties of the state. He has been one of the factors in the material 
development of his particular locality and has always been foremost in lend- 
ing his encouragement to worthy causes of every kind. 

Tyra Montgomery, the son of George and Nancy (Sturman) Mont- 
gomery, was born in Marion township, Hendricks county, in 1852. Inas- 
much as a history of George Montgomery is presented elsewhere in this 
volume, it is not necessary to go into detail concerning his interesting career 
at this place. Suffice it to say that he was one of the best known of the 
early pioneers of the county and a man who left a deep impress upon the 
county. 

Tyra Montgomery received an excellent common school education and 
continued to reside under the parental roof until after his marriage. As a 
boy he was ambitious and worked his own way through the graded schools 
at Amo by working out and fattening hogs of his own, thus early showing 
a dependence upon his own efforts. At the age of twenty-three he was 
married to Amanda Wilson, the daughter of Peter and Delilah Wilson, and 
to this union there were born two children, Alice and Grace Ann. 

Mr. Montgomery continued to farm until 1891, when he decided to 
quit farming and go on the road for the Huber Threshing Machine Com- 
pany. He was in the employ of this company for the next seven years, part 
of the time being on the road and part of the time in their offices doing 
clerical work of various kinds. He is an expert penman and accountant 
and made a valual)le man in the office for that reason. In 1898 he returned 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 673 

to Marion township and married Mrs. Mary Riley, the widow of WiUiam 
Riley, she being a native of Orange county, Indiana. She is the daughter 
of Mahlon and Charity (Morris) Leonard, and has one daughter by her 
first marriage, Nora, who has been adopted by her stepfather. 

Mr. Montgomery is a stanch Democrat, but does not take an active part 
in the political game, preferring to devote his time and energies to his 
agricultural interests. He has two highly productive farms. One consists 
of eighty acres near the northwest part of Danville, where he has just built 
a modern home in a beautiful location commanding a very broad view of 
the country. His other farm is one of eighty acres in the northeast part of 
Marion township. The family are very fond of music and have several 
musical instruments in the house, the daughter being an accomplished musi- 
cian. Mr. Montgomery is a very genial man who easily makes the stranger 
feel at home and is known throughout the neighborhood as a man who is 
charitable to the faults of others and who tries to help all those who are 
in distress in any way. He has a big, whole-souled heart, which makes him 
friends everywhere he goes. 



OLIVER SAYER GOWIN. 

The one of whom this narrative speaks is one of those strong, self- 
reliant and determined characters who are occasionally met with and who 
are of such a distinct type as to seem born leaders of their fellow men. Not 
that Mr. Gowin courts that distinction, for he is entirely unassuming, but his 
great force of character and his zeal and energy in whatever he undertakes 
naturally places him at the head of the crowd, and he has been a potent 
factor in the development of Hendricks county, where he has long main- 
tained his home and where he is well known to all classes for his honorable 
and industrious life, both in private and public. 

Oliver Sayer Gowin, the son of Steven and Eliza (Debery) (Walton) 
Gowin, was born in Marion township, Hendricks county, Indiana, two miles 
from his present farm, on October i6, 1854. His father was left an orphan 
at a tender age, his parents, James and Mary Gowin, both dying shortly 
after his birth in Virginia. He was sent to Frankfort county, Kentucky, 
where he was reared to manhood by his uncle. Steven Gowin was twice 
married, his first wife being a native of Kentucky, and to this first mar- 
(43) 



674 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

riage were born twelve children, only one of whom, Jane, is living at the 
present time, the other eleven being as follows : Etna, James, William, 
Allen, Sarah, Mary, Steven Merritt, Elizabeth, Robert, John and two un- 
named, who died in infancy. After his first marriage, in Kentucky, Steven 
Gowin moved to Ripley county, Indiana, where his first wife died, and 
some time after this he was married to Mrs. Eliza (Debery) Walton, and 
to the second marriage six children were born : Love, deceased ; Emily 
Adeline; Oliver Sayer, whose biography is set forth in this review; Alexan- 
der Campbell Buchanan; Cynthiana Ellen and Ann Eliza. While living in 
Ripley county, this state, Steven Gowin purchased a farm, but in 1852 he 
sold this place and moved to Hendricks county, where he settled in Marion 
township, about seven miles northwest of Danville. Here he purchased 
eighty acres and later added thirty acres more, and on this farm of one 
hundred and ten acres he lived the remainder of his life. He was a Whig 
in politics in the early days, and upon the dissolution of that old party, in 
1852, he became a Democrat. He was a member of the Christian church 
at New W^inchester and a man who was well known and highly respected 
in the community where he lived. 

Oliver Sa3'er Gowin, the third child of his father's second marriage, 
was given his elementary education in the district schools of Marion town- 
ship and spent his boyhood and early manhood days on his father's farm. 
Upon reaching his majority, in 1875, he was married to Mary E. Blanton, 
the daughter of John and Delilah (Ragland) Blanton. John Blanton was 
born in Kentucky in 181 1 and came to Hendricks county with his parents 
when a young man. He was a farmer all his life and died in 1873. His 
wife was also a native of Kentucky, her birth having occurred there in 
1825, and her death occurred in this county in 1907, at the advanced age of 
eighty-two. 

Mr. and Mrs. Oliver Gowin have seven children : Esther Ann. the 
wife of Daniel Dodds, a farmer of Eel River township, in this county; 
Alva Porter, who married Mamie Rooker, and who lives on a farm in 
Marion township, this county ; he has four children living and one who died 
in infancy, Cecil, Ollie. Jennie and Raymond; Charles, who died at the age 
of thirteen; Edgar M. married Emma Eggers. and is a farmer in Marion 
township, has one daughter. Dorothy, living, while three children died in 
infancy; Lilly Tessie, who became the wife of Maurice Sutherlin, who was 
formerly a teacher, but is now a farmer in Putnam county, this state, and 
they have one son, Howard; Mamie, the wife of Allen Eggers, a farmer 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 675 

of Putnam county, Indiana, and Clarence B., the youngest in order of birth, 
who is still under the parental roof. 

Mr. Gowin has been a farmer since the age of ten, starting out at that 
early age by renting a small tract from his father and tending his crops 
with the enthusiasm which characterizes boys of that tender age. Upon 
his marriage, he rented a farm of eighty acres four miles northwest of New 
Winchester and remained on this farm for the first three years of his mar- 
ried life. He then moved to the eighty acres adjoining his present farm 
and lived here for twelve years, after which he moved to his former farm 
of eighty acres and spent the next three and one-half years there. He then 
returned to his other eighty acres and, after living there for about a year 
and a half, he moved to his present place in 1895, where he has since re- 
sided. By close attention to his business and by good management he has 
succeeded in accumulating a fine farm of two hundred and forty acres. He 
is what the world delights to honor, a self-made man, and is not at all 
ashamed of the fact that he started out in life with nothing. 

Mr. Gowan is a Progressive Republican and is well informed upon all 
the political questions of the day, being a wide reader of magazines and 
newspapers. He has never held any office except that of township super- 
visor. He and his wife are members of the Christian church at New 
Winchester, and he has been a trustee of the church for a number of years. 
Mr. Gowan has managed his affairs in such a way as to keep his reputation 
unblemished before the world, and in his whole life of three score years in 
this county no act of his has ever been the occasion for censure upon the 
part of his fellow citizens. He has lived the quiet, unostentatious life of 
the good American citizen and is an honor and credit to the community in 
which he lives. 



BERTRAND- M. O'BRIEN, M. D. 

Hendricks county, Indiana, has reason to take pride in the personnel of 
her corps of medical men from the earliest days m her history to the present 
time, and on the roll of honored names that indicates the services of dis- 
tinguished citizens in this field of endeavor there is reason in reverting with 
gratification to that of Dr. Bertrand M. O'Brien, of Danville, who has attained 
eminence in his chosen profession and for a number of years has stood among 
the scholarly and enterprising physicians in a community long distinguished 
for the hisih order of its medical talent. He realized earlv that there is a 



6/6 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

luirposc in life and that there is no honor not founded on worth and no 
respect not founded on accomph'shment. His labors have been eminently 
worthy because they have contributed to a proper understanding of life and 
its problems. 

Bertrand M. O'Brien, the son of John O. and Rachel ( Anderson) O'Brien, 
was born in Putnam county, Indiana, October 5, 1880. His father was born 
in county Tipperary, Ireland, in May, 18 ic), and was the son of James 
O'Brien. At the age of twenty-one John O'Brien came to America and for 
the first four or five years worked on the steamboats on the Mississippi ri\-er. 
He then came to Greencastle, where he worked for three years and then moved 
to Hamrick Station, bought land and followed the occupation of a farmer 
for the remainder of his life. His wife was a native of Putnam county, this 
state, and a woman of great strength of character. John O'Brien became a 
prominent citizen of Hamrick Station and vicinity and as an indication of the 
esteem in which he was held by his fellow citizens it may be noted that he 
was elected as township trustee on two different occasions, and served with 
fidelity and efficiency throughout his whole term of office. He was a mem- 
ber of the Catholic church, while his wife adhered to the Christian church. 
His death occurred February 6, 1905, and his widow is still living in New 
Winchester, this county. 

Dr. Bertrand M. O'Brien was reared on the home farm and while a 
youth farmed on the shares in the neighborhood in order to get money for 
his education. After graduating from the Manhattan high school in his 
county, he attended the Central Normal College at Danville. However, he 
was determined to obtain a medical education, and he entered, in the fall 
of 1899, the St. Louis College of Physicians and Surgeons, and worked his 
way through, graduating with honor in April, 1903. He at once began the 
practice of medicine at Hazel wood, in Putnam county, this state, but after 
a year he entered into a partnership with another physician at Filmore. This 
partnership continued for one year, after which he came to New Winchester 
on March i, 1905, where he has since continued to reside. Here he has 
built up a very large and lucrative practice and is justly regarded as one of 
the best physicians of this section of the state. In 191 3, in order to keep 
fully abreast of the times, he took a post-graduate course at the State Uni- 
versity of Illinois, at Chicago. He is a wide reader of all literature bearing 
upon his profession and takes a deep interest in all the associations which 
deal with his profession. 

Doctor O'Brien was married May 18, 1902, to Candace Bowman, the 
daughter of John M. and Sarah Bowman. Her father is a farmer in Put- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 6/7 

nam county. Doctor O'Brien and wife are the parents of two children, Bere- 
nice and Waldo. Fraternally, he is a member of the Modern Woodmen of 
America and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, while he and his wife 
are both members of the Christian church of New Winchester. The Doctor 
is a very genial gentleman to meet and has an ever-increasing number of 
friends who take delight in his success. His career is a splendid example of 
what can be accomplished by a determined American youth ^yhen he makes up 
his mind to qualify himself for any particular profession and should be a 
source of inspiration to others who are forced to make their own way in 
the world. Doctor O'Brien is just entering into the period of his life where 
his usefulness is increasing and in the course of time he bids fair to become 
one of the most valuable members of the community in which he is living. 



HENRY C. RODNEY. 

Among the citizens of Hendricks county who have built up comfortable 
homes and surrounded themselves with many of the luxuries of life, no one 
has attained a higher degree of success than Henry C. Rodney. His story 
reads like a romance, for there appears to be much of accident and the whims 
of fortune in his life's career. His family history goes back to France on one 
side and England on the other, and if his father had not been a Confederate 
soldier he would not be represented in this volume today. Michael Rodney, 
the father of Henry C. Rodney, was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, on 
July 4, 1845. His father was a native of England and his mother was a 
French woman. Michael's father was a merchant in New Orleans, and he 
had two brothers who were sailors, and one is still a pilot at the jetties at 
the mouth of the Mississippi River. Michael C. Rodney received part of his 
education in the common schools at New Orleans, then went to France for 
a year. On returning to New Orleans during the Civil War, he was im- 
mediately drafted into the Confederate army and sent to the front, and par- 
ticipated in the fighting around Vicksburg. Upon its surrender, he was 
captured and sent to Camp Morton, at Indianapolis, where he was released 
after eighteen months. After his release he was absolutely friendless, penni- 
less and a mere lad less than twenty years of age. He started out to walk 
from Indianapolis and. going in a westerly direction, he came across J. M. 
Crawford, who lived southwest of Clayton on the National road. Mr. Craw- 
ford thought him a likelv looking youth, took him in and gave him employ- 



6/8 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ment, retaining him for two or three years. Later he worked for Milo 
Moon on the Sprague farm. He then married Caroline Hufford, the daugh- 
ter of Henry and Hulda (Snodgrass) Hnfiford, and after his marriage he 
moved to eighty acres of land in Center township, this county. About 
thirty-two years after he had gone into the Civil War he returned to New- 
Orleans, where he found his mother and brothers still living, his father having 
died in the meantime. Mrs. Michael Rodney died July i6, 1905. 

Henry C. Rodney, the eldest child of Michael C. and Caroline Rodney, 
was born on January 10, 1870, about three miles southeast of Danville. 
He was reared on the home farm and attended the neighborhood schooLs of 
his township. At the age of twenty-two he was married to Effie M., the 
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Gibbs. Mr. Gibbs was born on February 
12, 1845. '" Washington township, this county, and died January 15, 1905. 
He was the eldest son of George A. and Louisa (Hubbard) Gibbs. His father, 
Georoe A. Gibbs, was born on Auoust 2, 1822, in North Carolina, the son 
of Thomas and Tabitha Gibbs. In 1826 George A. Gibbs, with his parents, 
moved to Morgan county, Indiana, and in 1830 t(D Hendricks county, this 
state, where the}' settled in \A'ashington township. George A. Gil^bs was 
reared on this place and followed the vocation of a farmer all his life. He 
began life in limited circumstances, but became well to do, owning at the time 
of his death two hundred and seventy acres of land. He married, in 1842, 
Louisa Hubbard, who was born near Mol^ile, Alabama, in 1827, the daugh- 
ter of Samuel Hubbard. She came to AVashington township when she was 
a girl of about sixteen years of age. George Gibbs and wife were loyal 
and earnest members of the Methodist church and active and lilieral in its sup- 
port. Lie was interested in everything that pertained to the betterment of 
the comminiit}\ Lie helped to organize the church at Bartley's Chapel, and 
was a leading member and superintendent of the Sunday school at that place 
His death occurred in the early eighties. His wife still survives him and is 
a sincere Christian also and is still living a quiet, unostentatious life. She 
is remarkably well preser\ed for a v/oman of her years, Ijeing now eighty- 
seven vears of age. and, if occasion requires, she can do the family washing, 
hitch up the horses or even climb into the mow and throw down the hay for 
the horses. Henry Gibbs grew up on the farm of his father and in July, 
1863, enlisted in Company A, One Hundred Seventeenth Regiment Indiana 
Volunteer Infantry. He served for six months in Tennessee and Kentucky. 
In 1868 he married Elizabeth Van Treese, who died October 11, 1911. 

-After his marriage, in 1892, Mr. Rodney began farming two miles 
southeast of Plainheld, and after remaining there for a vear he moved to 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 679 

what is known as the Jordan farm, in the southeastern part of Center town- 
ship, where he remained for three years, at the expiration of which time 
he moved to a farm one mile west of Plainfield, where he Hved until 1898. 
when he moved to his present farm of two hundred and ten acres. However, 
he did not purchase all of this farm in 1898, but has added to the ninety-six 
and one-half acres which he bought at that time until he is now the owner 
of that amount of acreage. He raises all the crops common to this section 
of the country and also devotes considerable amount of attention to live 
stock. 

Fraternally, Mr. Rodney is a member of the Knights of Pvthias. and. 
with his wife, belongs to the Methodist Episcopal church, to which he is a 
liberal contributor. They are the parents of two children, Rollie and Clif- 
ford, who are lieing given the best ad\'antages for an excellent education. 

Politically, Mr. Rodney is a Progressive, feeling that in the principles 
as laid down by that party the welfare of the country will be advanced. 
His career has been a busy one, and it has been no less useful than busy, 
since he has always been an advocate of every enterprise which has for its 
object the improvement of his community. Being" a man of pleasing per- 
sonality, he has won a large circle of friends, who esteem him for his genuine 
worth as a man. 



ROBERT WESTERFIELD. 

One of the enterprising and successful farmers of Elendricks county, 
Indiana, who has succeeded in his chosen vocation solely through his own 
courage, persistency and good management, is Robert Westerfield, of Cen- 
ter township, a man who believes in lending what aid he can to his neighbors 
and the general public while advancing his individual interests, consequently 
he is regarded as one of our best citizens in every respect. 

Robert Westerfield, the son of Davis and Betsey (Carter) Westerfield. 
was born in 1855. near Keokuk. Iowa. His parents were both natives of 
Kentucky, his father born in Mercer county and his mother in Washington 
county, that state. David Westerfield was a son of James Westerfield, who 
was a native of New Jersey, and came to Kentucky with his parents when 
he was six years of age. While James Westerfield was still a small boy the 
Indians came to their settlement and the settlers were compelled to flee to 
the fort in which Daniel Boone was also a refugee, and here they stayed 
for six months. James Westerfield grew up near Harrodsburg, the old fort 



680 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

being within two hundred yards of the present court house there. It is in- 
teresting to note that the fort was built annind a large spring, which is still 
flowing. James Westerfield became county surveyor of Mercer county, and 
died in that county in 1866, being one of the prominent citizens of the county. 
Da\-id \\'esterfield was reared in Kentucky and there married Betsey Carter, 
who was "horn in Washington county, near the Mercer county line. David 
and wife lived in Kentucky until after se\'en children were born, then moved 
to Iowa, where they settled on a farm near Keokuk, and where they re- 
mained for aljout tw^o years. During their sojourn in Iowa, Robert was born. 
In 1855 the family returned to Kentucky, where another child was born, and 
where the mother died in the spring of 1857. Shortly afterwards David 
Westerfield married and to this second marriage two children were born, 
after which the second Mrs. Westerfield died and Mr. Westerfield again mar- 
ried and to the third marriage nine children were born. 

David Westerfield, although he was a citizen of Kentucky and his father 
an extensive slave owner, enlisted in the Nineteenth Regiment Kentucky 
Volunteers and fought for the Union nearly four years. He was in the siege 
and capture of Vicksburg, and he had a son wdio took part in the battle of 
Perryville, Kentucky, which was fought only four miles from his home. 
Robert Westerfield w^as then a boy of only eight years and could distinctively 
hear the cannon and musketry on that memorable 8th of October, 1862. He 
thought it was thunder in a clear sk}' until he saw both armies pass their 
home. 

When David Westerfield was married the second time in 1857, Robert, 
then a mere lad of fourteen, left home and went to Illinois, where he hired 
out to work by the month. In August, 1S74, he came to Hendricks county, 
Indiana, and located in Liberty tow-nship, w here he has lived since. He hired 
out as a farm hand and his entire life has been spent in agricultural pur- 
suits. Having left his home at so early an age. he has known \vhat it is 
to meet all kinds of hardships and discouragements. His father was finan- 
cially broken up during the Civil War, and his grandfather, James Wester- 
field, Vi-'ho ow^ned more than seventy slaves at the time they were freed, 
was also financially ruined. Robert Westerfield started life from a very 
small beginning, indeed, as he landed in Illinois at the age of fourteen years 
with only thirty cents in money, and when he came to Hendricks cotmty 
in 1874 he had fifty dollars, a horse, saddle and bridle, but, being of a 
frugal, thrifty turn of mind, he saved his money so that he was able to get 
married and start to housekeeping. He bought a team and started in to farm 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 68 1 

on his own account, settling on a tract in Liljerty township, this county. At 
the end of three years he engaged in teaming and fohowed this occupation 
for the next three years. In 1885 he began farming operations in Center 
township, where he Hved until 1896. The year previous to that he purchased 
eighty acres of land southeast of Danville and in the spring of 1896 moved 
to this place, and in the fall of that same year his barn, crops, wagons and 
tools were all destroyed by fire, but, with indomitable courage and energv. 
he started in anew, rebuilding his barn, purchased new tools, machinery and 
• wagons and was soon on his feet again. Within a few years he was able 
to purchase forty acres additional, and is now the owner of one hundred and 
twenty acres of fine farming land in Center township. 

Politically, Mr. Westerfield is a Democrat and has always been actively 
interested in the deliberations of his party. During the past twent}'-eight 
years he has been precinct committeeman every year but two, and served 
on election boards from the time the Australian ballot was introduced in 
1883 down to the present time. He has also frequently been a delegate to the 
state conventions of his party. Fraternally, he is a member of the Indepen- 
dent Order of Odd Fellows, both subordinate and encampment. 

In 1876 Mr. Westerfield was married to Elizabeth Lookebill, the daugh- 
ter of Peter O. and Nancy (Faircloth) Lookebill, both natives of Xorth 
Carolina, v.ho came to this county in 1853. IMrs. Westerfield was born in 
Liberty township, this county, and grew up near Clayton. Her mother died 
at the home of Mr. Westerfield on Thanksgiving day, 1909. Mrs. Wester- 
field's father was a soldier in the Mexican War, and also served in the Civil 
War, being a member of the Seventieth Regiment Indiana \^olunteer In- 
fantry. To Mr. and Mrs. Westerfield have been liorn fifteen children, ten 
of whom are li^•ing. Of the five who are deceased, four died in infancy and 
Lulu was killed in a railroad accident at the age of fifteen. The ten living 
children are Oliver, who married Lillie Petty, and lives on the home farm 
with his father; he has three children, Hubert. Florence and Beulah; James 
William married Mrs. Nora Cornet, and lives at Brownsburg, and has one 
daughter. Mary Elizabeth. William has been principal of the schools at 
Brownsburg, and now holds the same position at Pittsboro; Amos lives at 
Newton, Kansas, and married Birdie Johnson, and has four children, Leo. 
Harold. Oral and Mary Elizabeth; Rose became the wife of Alfred Williams 
and lives at Racine, Wisconsin, and his three children, Leona,Alfred and Rob- 
ert ; Harlis married Elsie Miklesby, and also lives at Racine, Wisconsin, and 
has one son, Harlan ; Emma married Wiley Stone and resides in Liberty town- 
ship, this county: Clede is in Racine. Wisconsin, while the other children, 



682 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Calla, Lilly, Robert, Alehin and ^Martha Ellen, are still under the parental 
roof. 

Mr. Westerfiekl has exer enjoyed the respect and esteem of those who 
know him for his friendly manner, business ability, his interest in public 
affairs and upright living, and he is regarded by all as one of the substantial 
and public-spirited citizens of the locality. 



CAREY M. HAMRICK. 



-\n enumeration of the representati\T citizens of Hendricks county, 
Indiana, would be incomplete without specific mention of the well known 
and po])ular gentleman whose name introduces this sketch. A member 
of one of the old and highly esteemed families of the central part of the 
state and for many years one of the public-spirited men of affairs, he has 
stamped his individuality upon the community and added luster to the 
honorable name which he bears, having always been scrupulously honest in 
all his relations with his fellow men and leax'ing no stone unturned where- 
by he might benefit his own condition as well as that of his neighbors and 
friends, consequently he has long ago won the favor of a great number of 
people of Marion township, where he maintains his home. 

Carey M. Hamrick. the son of William F. and Dicey (Blackburn) 
Hamrick, was born in Marion township, Hendricks county, Indiana, July 
lo, 1855. A complete history of his father, William F., is given in the 
history of Mrs. J. A. Tinder, which may be found elsewhere in this volume. 
Carey M. Hamrick was reared on the home farm and was gi\'en such 
education as w^as afforded by the subscription schools of his period. Upon 
reaching manhood, he was married to Aggie Smith, the daughter of Will- 
iam and Harriett Smith, and her birth occurred on August 6, 1855, "^3-'' 
Taylorsville, Kentucky, and came to Danville, Indiana, with her parents 
several years before her marriage. The one child which was born to this 
union died in infancy, and the wife and mother died October 29, 1890. Air. 
Hamrick then married, on September 25, 1894, Florence Wheeler, the 
daughter of Harper and Elizabeth (Scott) Wdieeler, of Clay township, 
this county. Harper Wheeler was the son of Elijah and Alelinda A\'heeler, 
who came from North Carolina to Clay township. Elizabeth (Scott) \\'heel- 
er grew up in Union township, this county, where her parents settled upon 
their arrival m this county from their native state of Pennsylvani;i. Air. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 683 

and Mrs Wheeler both, died when their daughter, Florence, was a small 
child and she was llien taken into the home of Joseph Feree, ot Danville, 
and there reared to womanhood. 

AJ"ter his second n^aiTiage Mr. and Airs. Hamrick moved to the north- 
Ccistern part of Iviarion ttjwnship. where they purchased a farm of one hun- 
dred and twenty acres, on which they now reside. They have one son. Clar- 
ence, born Octoljcr 26. 1895. '^''^^'^ graduated in the spring of 1914 in the 
hisfh school at North Salem. Mr. and Mrs. Hamrick are both devout mem- 
bers of the Methodist Episcopal church of Danville and are active partici- 
pants in all of the \arious departments of their church work. Mr. Hamrick 
has never taken an active part in politics, or sought for public office, being 
essentiallv a domestic man of modest and retiring disposition. He is an 
entertaining conversationalist and often regales his younger friends with 
stories of the days when the old court house was ])eing started, as well as 
the stirring incidents of the Civil War. He is a well read man and is well 
informed on all the current issues of the day. He has a large list of friends 
in the county w-ho honor him for his many sterling qualities of character and 
upright manner of living. 



DAVID A. CLEMENTS. 



The biographies of successful men are instructive as guides and in- 
centives to those whose career are yet to be acheived. The examples they 
furnish of patient purpose and consecutive endeavor strongly illustrate 
what is in the powder of each to accomplish. The gentleman whose life his- 
tory herewith is briefly set forth is a conspicuous example of one who has lived 
to good purpose and achieved a definite degree of success in the special sphere 
to which his talents have been devoted. 

David A. Clements, the son of John N. and Mary V. (Hendron) Clem- 
ents, was born in North Salem, Hendricks county, Indiana, on January 22. 
1858. John N. Clements w^as born in Clements Valley, Kentucky, and grew 
up and married in that state. Mary V. Hendron was a native of \'irginia. 
Immediately after their marriage the young bridal conple took their honey- 
moon trip to Putnam county, Indiana. They came through on horseback, 
following blazed trails, forded ri\-ers and threaded their way through the 
wilderness. They located first in Putnam county, afterwards going to Boone 
county, this state, but after a short stay in that county, settled in Eel River 
township, Hendricks county, al^out one and one-half miles south of North 



684 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Salem, in what was then known as the Round Town neighljorhood. There 
they started pioneer life with their rnde log cabin and all that went with it. 
They lived here until David A. was sixteen years of age, when they moved 
into North Salem and spent the remainder of their lives. The panic of 1873 
brought disaster to the family and the farm had to be sold. John N. Clem- 
ents and two sons, John E. and George H., were in the Civil War and served 
throughout that fierce struggle. John N. Clements enlisted tnree times and 
was wounded twice and permanently disabled. After the panic of 1873 
he recovered his finances and died in comfortable circumstances. He was a 
stanch Republican all his life and active in the party organization. Relig- 
iously, he was a member of the Regular Baptist church from boyhood, his 
father being a Baptist minister. He lived to be ninetv-one years of age, his 
wife dying at the age of sixty-five. 

David A. Clements received his education in the district schools of his 
township, and when he was sixteen years of age he moved with his parents 
to North Salem, where he completed his educational training, after which 
he started to learn the trade of a machinist and for fourteen years was an 
engineer at North Salem in a flouring mill. He was then left wdthout a 
position upon the burning of the mill. He came to Indianapolis, where he 
worked for about sixteen months in Wasson's department store, following 
which he was appointed superintendent of the Hendricks county poor farm 
and held that position for six and one-half years, his term ending March 
I, 1 9 14. After leaving the county farm he purchased a farm near Browns- 
burg, where he now resides. 

Mr. Clements was married September 14, 1880, to Lettie M. Waters, 
the daughter of Harney Waters, and to them has been born one daughter, 
Anna Maude, wife of U. W. Parsons, a lumber dealer of Brownsburg, and 
they have two children, David Vanuel and Beatrice Pauline. They also 
had a daughter, ]\Iaurine, who died on Christmas day, 1913. at the age of 
two years and seven months. Mr. and Mrs. Clements were the parents of 
three other daughters: Delia G., who died at the age of two years; Nellie C, 
who died at the age of four, and Delia C, who died at the age of two years. 

The father of Mrs. Clements was born in Kentucky December 7, 1842, 
and was the son of William and Julia Ann (Waters) Waters. When he 
was a balje in arms his parents moved to North Salem, wdiere his father 
followed farming all his life. In the fall of 1862 Nathan Harney Waters 
married Rosena Zimmerman, the daughter of John and Nancy (Myers) 
Zimmerman. He was born near North Salem, his parents coming here from 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 685 

Kentucky. The Zimmermans were a well-known pioneer family and reared 
a family of fifteen children. For the past ten years Mr. ^^'aters has Deen 
sexton of the Fairview cemetery at North Salem. He and his wife are 
memljers of the Christian church and have been married for more than a 
half century. 

Fraternally, Mr. Clements is a member of the time-honored order of 
Free and Accepted Masons, and he and his wife both belong to the Order of 
the Eastern Star. Religiously, Mr. Clements and his family are loyal ana 
consistent members of the Christian church at North Salem and are inter- 
ested in all of the work of that church. They have a hospitable home and 
have a large number of friends and acquaintances who esteem them for their 
many good cjualities. 



WILLIAM R. BOWMAN. 

Many states in the L^nion have contributed to the present population 
of FIcndricks county, Indiana, but it is probable North Carolina furnished 
as many of the early pioneers of this county as any other state in the Union. 
Most of the people who came from North Carolina to Indiana in the earlv 
history of the state were members of the Friends church, who left the state 
of their nativity because of their opposition to slavery. When North Caro- 
lina changed her constitution in the early part of the nineteenth century, 
she permitted slaves to be held in that state, and as soon as the Friends 
found that slavery was to be tolerated they made preparations to leave the 
state. Wayne county, Indiana, was practically settled by North Carolina 
Friends, and other counties in the state received large delegations of nati\e 
citizens of North Carolina. Wherever these native sons of North Carolina 
settled, they became prosperous and influential citizens. 

Among the Friends of North Carolina who settled in Hendricks county, 
there is no one who has led a more highly respected and honorable career 
in this county than William Romulus Bowman, who was born March 22, 
1850, in Guilford county, North Carolina. His parents were Richard and 
Polly Ann (Little) Bowman, natives of Guilford county, that state. Richard 
Bowman was a farmer in his native state and spent all of his days there. 
His wife was born in 1823, and died in October, 1910, in her native state. 
Air. and Mrs. Richard Bowman were the parents of ten children : Leroy W. ; 
Lysandry A., deceased; Mary, deceased in infancy; William Romulus, whose 
historv is here presented; Cornelia, deceased; Edmond, a resident of North 



686 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Carolina: Martha, deceased; Rnfus. of North Carohna ; Victor, deceased, 
and Mrs. Xanna Emma Ho.s^gins, who hves in North Carohna. Richard 
was a £]:rcat worker in the church, as was his wife. 

W'iHiam R. Bowman spent his l>oyhood days on his father's farm in 
North Carohna, but upon reaching his majority he came to Henrv county, 
Indiana, and shortly afterwards went to Rush county, this state, where lie 
remained a \'ear. He then remo\'ed to Hamilton county, Indiana, and three 
years later came to Hendricks county, where he remain.ed for the next three 
years, later going to Morgan county, Indiana, where he married, after which 
he returned to Hendricks county in ]88i and settled on his present farm. 

William R. Bowman was married on December 12, 1878, to Jane Rachel 
McCollum, the daughter of Joseph and Matilda (Weesner) McCollum. Jo- 
seph Milton McCollum was born April 24, 1828, in Randolph county, North 
Carolina, and, when a young man, came to Guilford township, Hendricks 
county, Indiana, where he worked for Mr. Blair and others. When he 
came to the county he had sixty-fi\'e cents and two suits of jeans and spent 
thirty cents of his capital for a Bible. He worked for a short time in this 
county, then went to Morgan county, where he worked two years for Mr. 
Weesner, and while working there he became acquainted with Mr. ^^^eesner"s 
daughter, and subsequently married his employer's daughter in Morgan 
county, and began farming for himself in that county. He bought 
eight}' acres of land in Monroe township, that county, and by diligent effort 
and thrift he and his wife accumulated nearly three hundred acres before 
his death, which occurred on July 15, 1908, at the advanced age of eighty. 
Joseph Milton McCollum was a great Bible student all his life and was a prom- 
inent worker in the Friends church at West Union, "Morgan county. 
Throughout his life in that county he was an active worker in the church and 
attributes his success to the fact that he was one of the tithers of his denomi- 
nation. Mr. McCollum was a prosperous farmer and specialized in the rais- 
ing of Poland China hogs. Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Milton ^McCollum were 
the parents of nine children : Mrs. Delphiana Lawrence, who is living in 
Kansas: Mrs. Elmina Johnson, of Liscomb, Iowa: Mrs. Mary Page, who re- 
sides on the old home place in Morgan count}', Indiana: Jane, the wife of Mr. 
Bowman; Louisa, deceased; John L., who lives in Michigan, and twins 
who died in infancy. Mrs. IMcCollum, now eighty-nine years of age, is 
living with Mr. and Mrs. Bowman. She came from her home in North 
Carolina to Henry county, Indiana, when a small child with her parents and 
soon afterwards the familv came to Morgan county, Indiana, where they 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 687 

both died. The father hved to the advanced age of ninety, and her mother 
passed away at the age of sixty-six. Mrs. McColkim is now an invah'd, 
and has been for eight years, but is kindly cared for by Mr. and Mrs. Bowman, 

W'ilham R. Bowman and wufe are the parents of five children: John 
Alfred, who died at the age of fourteen months; Urban, who married Elsie 
Thompson and has three children, William Harold, Blanche Maria and Rich- 
ard Alerlin; Urban is a farmer living in Marion county, near Bridgeport; 
Milton Richard, the third child of :\Ir. and Airs. Bowman, married Ion;.' 
Dillon; he is a skilled machinist at Bridgeport, Indiana; William Gurney 
died at the age of twenty years, and Jennie died in infancv. 

Mr. Bowanan and his wife are both faithful and loyal members of the 
Friends church and give to it their earnest and zealous support. Politically, 
Mr. Bowman is a Prohibitionist, feeling that the principles as advocated bv 
that party, if put into effect, would insure the more rapid advancement of 
civilization in this country. Mr. Bowman has been a resident of this county 
for about forty years, and in that time has impressed his individuality upon 
his community. He is a man of generous impluses and a firm believer in 
those principles of honestv and integrity which he has always employed in 
his business. He is a man essentially of domestic taste and is devoted to 
his family and to his church, and because of the clean and wholesome life 
which he has lived in this county he has won the esteem of his friends and 
neighbors. 



JAMES E. DAUGHERTY. 

A farmer of Hendricks county, Indiana, who has attained to a position 
of influence in his community is James E. Daugherty. one of the native sons 
of the Hoosier state, whose life of more than three score and ten years has 
been spent wholly within this state, and he has been a witness of the remark- 
able growth which has taken place during that long period. He has alw^ays 
led a quiet life and during his long career he has never forsaken the soil and 
the independent existence which characterizes the successful farmer. 

James E. Daugherty. the son of James and Mary Ann (Mills) Daugherty, 
was born in Montgomery county. Indiana, February 8. 1841. His parents 
were natives of Kentucky, and came to this state and settled in Montgomery 
county in 1830. His mother died on July 31. 1872, at the age of sixty- 
six years, and his father died at Ladoga, Indiana, on January 9. 1891. Mr. 
and Mrs. Daugherty, Sr., reared a family of five children: Wesley W., who 



688 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

died JNIarch lo, 1902; Airs. Nancy Lee Stover, who died March 12, 1908; 
]\Irs. Catherine Bird, who died in August. 1881, and Mrs. Minerva Harsh- 
berger, who died March 12, 1906; James E., whose history is here presented. 

James E. Dangherty was reared on his father's farm in Montgomery 
county, Indiana, and received his eckication in the schools of his home neigh- 
borhood. He was married May zy, 1869, to EHza Jane McCoun, who was 
the daughter of John W. and Melvina (Talbott) McCoun, and born in Jack- 
son township, Hendricks county, on August 3J, 1849. To this union were 
born the following children : Henrietta, who married Homer Paterson and 
died on August 21, 1890; Edgar, a farmer in Center township; Charles. Mary 
and Grace, who are at home. 

In the fall of the same year he was married, Mr. Daugherty bought a 
farm in section 31, Center township, Hendricks county, Indiana, and he proved 
to be a very successful farmer from the start of his agricultural career. As 
a result of his thrift and economy he was able to add to his possessions from 
time to time until he is now the owner of five hundred and fifty-six acres 
of well improved land in the ccninty. In addition to his heavy farming in- 
terests, he has engaged in the buying and selling of all kinds of live stock. 
He raises considerable live stock himself, making a speciality of pedigreed 
Shorthorn cattle and Poland China hogs. 

Politically, Mr. Daugherty is a Democrat, while in religion the family 
are identified with the Christian church. Mr. Daugherty has given satis- 
faction as executor of several estates. 



REV. PETER W. RAIDABAUGH. 

There is no earthly station higher than the ministry of the Gospel, no 
life can be more uplifting and grander than that which is devoted to the 
amelioration of the human race, a life of sacrifice for the betterment of the 
brotherhood of man, one that is willing to cast aside all earthly crowns and 
laurels of praise and fame in order to follow in the footsteps of the lowly 
Xazarene. It is not possible to measure adequately the height, depth and 
breadth of such a life, for its influences continue to permeate the lives of 
others through successive generations, so the power it has can not be known 
until the "last great day when the trumpet shall sound and the dead shall be 
raised incorruptible." One of the self-sacrificing, ardent, loyal and true 
spirits that has been a blessing to the race, who has left in his wake an in- 




REV. AND MRS. PETER W. RAIDABAUGH 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 689 

tkience that ever makes the world brighter and betters the hves of those who 
follow, is the Rev. Peter W. Raidabaugh, whose life forcibly illustrates what 
energv. integrity and a fixed purpose can accomplish when animated by noble 
aims and correct ideals. He has ever held the unequivocal confidence and 
esteem of the people among whom he has labored, and his career can be very 
profitably studied by the ambitious youth standing at the parting of the ways. 

A man who has played a large part in the work of the Friends church 
and its allied organizations is Peter W. Raidabaugh, of Plainfield. A man 
of broad scholarship, fine business ability and lofty ideals, he has long occu- 
pied a conspicuous place as a churchman and as a citizen of the community 
where he has resided. He was born in Lewisburg. Union county, Pennsyl- 
vania. March 9, 1849, the son of Adam and Eve (Winegarden) Raidabaugh. 
Both of his parents were natives of Pennsylvania, his father being a plasterer 
and a man of more than ordinary ability. He was a prominent Mason and 
Odd Fellow and was an officer in the grand lodges of both orders. He had 
the reputation of being one of the best informed men on Masonry in the 
whole state. He died in the state of his nativity in 1892 and his widow sur- 
vived him just ten years. Mr. and Mrs. Adam Raidabaugh were the parents 
of six children, all of whom are living: George P., of Baltimore, Maryland; 
Daniel, of Lewisburg, Pennsylvania; Charles A., of Atchison, Kansas; Mi- 
nerva, of Lewisburg, Pennsylvania; Henry W., of Baltimore, Maryland; and 
Peter W., the immediate subject of this sketch. 

Peter W. Raidabaugh was educated in the public schools of Lewisburg, 
Pennsylvania, and very early in life decided that he would make the ministry 
his life work. When he was only twenty years of age he began to fill the 
pulpit in the Evangelical xA.ssociation church and at the age of thirty-two he 
was the presiding elder of the Lewisburg district of the Central Pennsylvania 
conference, of that church. He continued in the ministry until 1883, when 
he was elected editor of the Sunday school publications of that church. He 
then moved to Cleveland, Ohio, where he lived for the next ten years. In 
1889, on account of a division in the Evangelical Association, resulting in 
two denominations, the subject did not feel clear to go with either faction 
and he united with the Friends church and was immediately installed as 
pastor of the society at Cleveland, retaining this charge for two years. The 
Publishing Association of Friends then put him in charge of the Sunday 
school and other publishing interests of the Friends church throughout the 
United States and Canada, and he located at Chicago. In addition, he was 
editor of the Christian Worker until 1894, when the paper was consolidated 
(44) 



690 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

with the Friends Rcznezv of Philadelphia, and the two papers merged into the 
American Friend, the present church organ; and since that time Rev. P. W. 
Raidabaiigh has given all of his time to the editing and publishing of the 
Sunday school literature of the Friends church, with his headquarters at 
Chicago. The business was removed to Plainfield in 1901 and remained 
there until 191 3, when it was transferred to the Friends Bible School Board 
at Fairmount, Indiana. In 1904 he bought the Plainiield Progress and 
changed the name of the paper to the Friday Caller, and, with his son Walter 
as editor, the paper was a decided success. He sold the paper in 19 10 to C. C. 
Cumberworth, but two years later he took it back again, and finally disposed 
of it in 191 3 to Fred E. Warner, the present editor and owner. 

Reverting to an earlier period in Rev. Raidabaugh's career, during the 
year 1885, while he was serving as Sunday school editor in the Evangelical 
publishing house at Cleveland, Ohio, a city election occurred, the question of 
closing the saloons on Sunday becoming the leading issue in connection with 
the election of councilmen. Rev. Raidabaugh being a resident of the twenty- 
third ward, the largest resident ward of the city, he was requested by a large 
number of citizens to stand for election to council on the Republican ticket. 
At the primary he was nominated over two other candidates and was subse- 
quently elected. For two years he was active in the affairs of the city, being 
chairman of the committee on printing and a member of the committees on 
fire and water and on ordinances. His voice and vote were constantly used 
in favor of a higher moral tone for the city. 

After the incorporation of the town of Plainfield, Rev. Raidabaugh be- 
came the first treasurer of the town, and was re-elected, serving for six years, 
with eminent satisfaction to his fellow citizens. 

In 1889 Rev. Raidabaugh was sent as a delegate from the state of Ohio 
to the first world's Sunday school convention, held in the city of London, 
England. 

Rev. P. W. Raidabaugh now finds himself out of active business for the 
first time since early manhood, although he is still the pastor of the Friends 
church at Bridgeport, Indiana, and has been in charge of that church for the 
past ten years. 

Rev. P. W. Raidabaugh was married October 15, 1872, to Sarah W. 
Walter, of Union county. Pennsylvania, and to this union there have been 
born three children : Walter, who was a very promising young man and as- 
sociated with his father in the newspaper at Plainfield, and died in 1910; 
Mrs. Elizabeth Newsom, of New York city, and Helen, deceased. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 69 1 

Rev. P. \^^ Raidabaugh has lived an eminently useful life. He has al- 
ways been calm and dignified, never demonstrative, yet his life has been a 
persistent plea, both by precept and example, as well as by vv^ritten and spoken 
word, for the purity and grandeur of right principles and the beauty and ele- 
vation of wholesome character. He has always had the greatest sympathy 
for his fellow men and has ever been willing to aid and encourage those who 
were struggling to aid themselves against adverse fate, yet in this, as in every- 
thing else, he was entirely unostentatious. To him home life has been a sa- 
cred trust and the church a sanctuary of faith, and nothing has ever been 
able to swerve him from the path of rectitude and honor. 



WILLIAM HENRY ARNOLD. 

Practical industry, wisely and vigorously applied, never fails of success. 
It carries a man onward and upward, brings out his individual character and 
acts as a powerful stimulus to the eiTorts of others. The greatest results 
in life are often attained by simple means and the exercise of the ordinar}- 
qualities of common sense and perseverance. This everyday life, with its 
cares, necessities and duties, affords ample opportunities for acquiring ex- 
perience of the best kind and its most beaten paths provide a true worker with 
abundant scope for effort and improvement. The fact having been recognized 
early in life by the subject of this sketch, he has seized the opportunities 
that he encountered on the rugged hill that leads to life's lofty summit 
where lies the ultimate goal of success, never attained by the weak, am- 
bitionless and inactive. Mr. Arnold is carrying on the various departments of 
his enterprise in Hendricks county, Indiana, with that discretion and energy 
which are sure to find their natural sequence in definite success, and in such 
a man there is particular satisfaction in offering in his life history justi- 
fication for the compilation of works of this character — not necessarily that 
the careers of men of Mr. Arnold's type have been such as to gain them 
wide reputation or the admiring plaudits of men, but they have been true 
to the trusts reposed in them, have shown such attributes of character as 
entitled them to the regard of all and have been useful each in his respective 
sphere of action, while at the same time he has won and retained the esteem 
of all with whom he has come in contact as a result of his industrious and 
upright career. 

William Henry Arnold was born on September 15, 1852, in Putnam 



692 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

county, this state, the son of Richard and Levina (Potts) Arnold, the for- 
mer of whom was a native of Kentucky and came to Harrison county, this 
state, with his parents. Ixichard, Sr., and Rebecca Arnold, being but five 
years of age at that time. Richard. Sr., was born in Kentucky on March 
15, 1765, and Rebecca was born in the same state in July, 1773. Their mar- 
riage took place in 1790 and Richard. Jr.. was born August i, 1805. He 
grew to manhood in Harrison county, this state, and was there married oii 
November 10, 1825, to Levina Potts. His life-long vocation was that of 
farming and at an early date in the history of this section he came to this 
county, settling on what is now known as the old Bowen farm. Here he 
probably entered about a quarter section of government land. He was a 
hard working man and cleared up his land, nicely fencing it and preparing it 
for cultivation. He remained on this farm for several years and. then sold 
out and moved to Arkansas. He made the trip overland in a covered wagon. 
!mt so disappointed was he with the prospects upon arriving there that he did 
not even unload his wagon, but after a short rest started back to the good 
old Hoosier state. He went to Putnam county, where he obtained a farm 
and where he remained for se\'eral years and reared his family. He later 
disposed of this property and returned to this county, taking up his resi- 
dence in Franklin townshij). Near the close of his life he retired from acti\e 
farm work and went to Stilesville to live, his death occurring there. Levina 
Potts, his wife, who was a Kentuckian by birth, also died at their home in 
Stilesville. They were the parents of fifteen children, Jacob, Beckie, Mar- 
garet, Nancy, Maria, Rebecca, Richard, Malinda, John. Vina Ann. Colum- 
bus, and an infant, all deceased. These living, besides the subject, are George 
and Alonzo. 

William Henry Arnold spent his Ijoyhood days in this county, coming 
with his parents from Putnam county when fourteen years of age. \\'hen 
a youth he attended the early schools of the township, acf|uiring the best 
education the opportunities of that day afforded in this community. On 
Septemljer 22, 1876, he was united in marriage with Sarah Cosner, daugh- 
ter of John and Louisa (Rolla) Cosner. She is a native of this county, 
havin.g been born at Stilesville. John Cosner was a native of North Caro- 
lina, born there on May 9. 1822, and died at Stilesville on January 31, 1893. 
He was a farmer all his life, a man of excellent character and ability. He 
was twice married, his first wife being Eliza Wicker, to whom he was united 
in marriage in 1846. Her death occurred on Noveml)er i, 1848, and she 
left one child, a son, Alfred. In 18^1 John Cosner was again married; 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 693 

this time to Louisa Rolla, and b}- this marriage became the father of six 
children. Besides Sarah, wife of the subject of this sketch, there are Aliranda, 
Ehzabeth, Leander, Lafayette and ]\Iargaret. Louisa (Rolla) Cosner was 
a native of Ohio, born February i6. ICS34. and died at Stilesville, this state, 
on October 24, 1883. To the subject and his wife have been born three 
children. Glenn, Earle and Irvin. All his life ^Ir. Arnold' has been engaged 
in farming and kindred pursuits. Shortly after his marriage he came to 
reside on his present farm, containing one hundred and sixty acres. He 
is one of the best farmers of the county, progressive in all his methods. He 
is thorough and systematic in his work, makes a careful study of his soil 
and determines by scientific methods what it is best adapted for and then 
proceeds to carry out his theories with energy and ability- The soil with 
which he has to deal is exceptionally fine and for the last five years he has 
put a great deal of thought and labor on the nursery business, devoting par- 
ticular attention to fruit trees, etc. He is the originator of an excellent pear 
known as the "Arnold" pear, which has acquired a wide reputation and is 
highly advertised by nurserymen. Mr. Arnold has been highly compliment- 
ed on his success in this line of endeavor by men who have devoted a life 
of study and experiment to the same line. In addition to this line of work, 
he has considerable reputation as a raiser and breeder of cattle and at all 
times feeds considerable stock. He is an eminently successful man and has 
won his enviable position through tireless endeavor and well directed energy. 
He is a great reader, a deep thinker, a thoroughly sound and sane man and. 
as may be expected, is a delightful companion. 

Mr. Arnold's political affiliation is with the Democratic party in the 
affairs of which he takes a quiet, though keen, interest. He is too busy with 
his own affairs to desire public office of any sort, but at one time was induced 
to serve as township supervisor, which place he held for four years. Mrs. 
Arnold is a member of the Missionary Baptist church at Stilesville, and while 
Mr. Arnold is not connected with any church society, he is interested in 
the progress of all. The family is one of the best known and most highly 
respected in the county, with a strong influence for right in all phases of life. 
Mr. Arnold can honestly claim all the honor accorded him for what he has 
accomplished, for he started in life with practically nothing, but is now one 
of the substantial men of his community as a result of his close application 
to business and his persistency. He has a host of friends, for his life has 
been honorable in every respect. 



694 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

GEORGE W. WISE. 

Among the honorable and inlhiential citizens of Hendricks county, Indi- 
ana, is the subject of this brief review, who has here maintained his home 
for many years, winning a definite success by means of the agricultural in- 
dustry, to which he has devoted his attention during the years of an acti\e 
business life. His career has been without a shadow of wrong or suspicion 
of e\il. and thus he has ever commanded the confidence and esteem of his 
fellow men. 

George Washington Wise, the proprietor of a one-hundred-and-fifty-acre 
farm in Marion township, this county, was born in Granger county, Ten- 
nessee, in 1845. His parents were William and Patience (Sherrod) Wise, 
both of whom were natives of Wayne county. North Carolina, where they 
were reared, married, and spent their earlier married life, later moving to 
Tennessee, where they remained until their death, which occurred in 1875. 
George W. Wise lived in Wayne county, North Carolina, until sixteen years 
of age. and then went to Garrett count}\ Kentucky, where he had relatives, 
with whom he lived until he grew to manhood and married. 

Mr. Wise was married in 1866 to Nancy Jane Mallicoat, the daughter 
of Joel and Martha (Allen) INlallicoat. George Wise and his wife were 
playmates when they were children in Tennessee, and the friendship which 
was established in those early da3^s was broken when he moved to Kentucky, 
but after Nancy Mallicoat grew to young womanhood she happened to go 
on a \'isit with her brothers to Kentucky, and visited in the same neighborhood 
where George was working, and they again met. and the friendship which 
was the joy of their childhood days ripened into a deeper affection with the 
result that they were united in marriage l^efore her return to her native state. 
Her father was a ])rosperous farmer in Tennessee and a man of fine charac- 
ter in every way. He lived to an advanced age, his death occurring in his 
ninety-third year on October 20, 1910. and when he passed away it was said 
that he did not have an enemy in the world. His wife, the mother of Xancy, 
died when she was only four years of age. 

Mr. and Mrs. Wise remained in Kentucky but five years after their mar- 
riage, and then came to Hendricks count}', where they located in the east- 
ern part of Marion township in July, 1873. In this township they have 
lived for the past forty years. At first they were not able to purchase a farm, 
having come here with practically nothing, and as a result they had to rent 
land, but they were industrious and frugal and managed so that they might 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 095 

save and have a home of their own. They first bought sixty acres of land 
just west of New Winchester, and from time to tune added acre by acre to 
this until they now have one hundred and fifty acres of fine farming land, 
all of which is clear of encumbrances of any kind. They have done this 
and yet have played an important part in the material, social and moral wel- 
fare of their community. They have one son, William Henry, who was born 
in 1867. He married Ida Lasley, the daughter of Gabriel and Nancy Lasley, 
and is now living at Gonvick. Minnesota, where he is following the occu- 
pation of a farmer. He and his wife have nine children living, Clyde, Minnie, 
Fred, Martha, Willam, Fanny, Gertrude, Kitty V. and Ida May. Paul died 
when he was three and one-half years old. 

Mr. Wise has lived a clean, upright and straightforward life and there 
is not a man who has ever had cause to question his integrity. His and his 
wife are loyal members of the Baptist church at Danville and are firm be- 
lievers in the efficacy of church w^ork. They have always stood for the best 
ideals and have always endeavored to cultivate that sweetness which is the 
saving grace of ci^■ilization and the benediction of mankind in general. 



SAMUEL C. McCOUN. 

The subject of this sketch is one of those strong, self-reliant and de- 
termined characters who are occasionally met with and who are of such a 
distinct type as to seem to be born leaders of their fellow men. Not that 
Mr. McCoun courts that distinction, for he is entirely unassuming, but his 
great force of character and his zeal and energy in whatever he undertakes 
naturally place him at the head of the crowd, and he has been a potent 
factor in later years in the development of his community. While still a 
young man, Mr. McCoun has attained a degree of success which might well 
be the pride of one of a far greater number of years, and which promises 
great things for a wider field of influence as the years go on. He is well 
known to all classes for his honest and industrious life, both in private and 
public. 

Samuel C. McCoun was born on March 25, 1884, on the old home- 
stead farm, northwest of Danville, Hendricks county, Indiana, and he is the 
son of John W. and Elizabeth (Carrington) McCoun. John W. ]\IcCoun 
was a native of the state of Kentucky, born in 1821 at Winchester, that 
state. W^hen but five years of age he was brought to Indiana by his par- 



696 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ents, James and Eliza McCoun. They first settled in Marion township, this 
county, where they farmed for aljoiit fifteen years. They were among the 
large land owners of the county and it is believed that they had entered from 
the government the land which they possessed. They went to Putnam 
county, this state, accompanied by their son, John W., and about the year 
1856 moved to Missouri. There John W. remained for about a year, when 
he returned to Center township, this county, and farmed here until his 
death, in 1900, on the homestead farm. John W. McCoun was considered 
one of the successful farmers of his community, being very methodical and 
thorough in his work. Beside the attention he gave to general farming, 
he took great interest in his herd of Shorthorn cattle, which was truly a 
pride. He raised considerable stock at all times. John W. McCoun had no 
fraternal aftiliations whatever, and in his early life had been aligned with 
the Whig party, later endorsing the platform of the Democratic party. He 
always took a keen interest in politics, but never aspired to office of any 
sort. For many years he was a faithful member of the Christian church 
and ordered his life according to the tenets of that faith. He was twice 
married, his first wife being Melvina Talbott, of Putnam county, by whom 
he had a family of seven children, namely: John T., deceased; James L., 
deceased; Eliza, Mrs. Daugherty; Amelia, Mrs. Williams; Robert; Anne, 
Mrs. Johnson; and Boone. The first Mrs. McCoun died in 1880 and his 
second wife was Elizabeth Carrington, by whom he had one child, the sub- 
ject of this sketch. She is a native of Hendricks county, born in 1839, and 
makes her home on the old homestead with her son, the subject. 

Samuel C. McCoun spent his boyhood days on the home farm in Center 
township, this county, attending the township schools, and later took a two- 
year agricultural course at Purdue University, at Lafayette, this state. In 
addition to general farming, he makes a specialty of raising and breeding 
Berkshire hogs, and has raised and sold manv animals of value. His farm 
IS known as the Locust Grove farm and consists of two hundred and eighty- 
eight acres of excellent land, having the advantage of being located close to 
the city of Danville. Every bit of this land is under careful cultivation and 
observation and in addition there are many large and substantial buildings, 
one large building being devoted exclusively to the raising of hogs. The 
farm residence is a handsome brick structure of modern design, considered 
one of the finest homes in the county. Mr. McCoun is a most progressive 
farmer and an indefatigable worker. He is considerable of a student along 
the line of his vocation and uses his technical knowledge to the best possible 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 697 

advantage. He is generous in this respect, not retaining the results of his 
studies for his own use alone, but being glad to be of assistance to others, 
and in that way he is making for himself an enviable name throughout the 

county. 

On November 15. 1905, Mr. McCoun was united in marriage with 
Mabel McCoun, a native of Hendricks county, and a daughter of Edward 
and Alice (Steward) McCoun. To their union has been born one child. 
Alice. 

]\Ir. McCoun' s fraternal affiliation is with the ancient order of Free- 
masonry, being identified with Lodge No. 26 at Danville, and he is also a 
chapter member of the Order of the Eastern Star. Since attaining his 
majority, Mr. McCoun has been identified with the Democratic party and 
of later years takes the more progressive view of the leaders of that party. 
While not a member of any church. Mr. McCoun's religious sympathies are 
with the Christian church, of which his wife is a member and to whose sup- 
port he contributes of his means. Mr. McCoun is a man of sterling char- 
acter, quiet and unassuming in his manner, with a kindly word for his neigh- 
bors, of excellent personal habits and undoubted veracity. Needless to say, 
?uch a broad-minded and helpful man stands high in public estimation and 
has won to himself many who hold him in high regard. 



MEIAaELE C. ENSMINGER. 

A community is judged largely by the lives of comparatively few of its 
members. Few residents of Hendricks county were as widely and favorably 
known as the late ^lelville C. Ensminger, whose life's record was finished 
November 11. igoi. No man stood higher in the esteem and confidence of 
the communitv in which he resided than he. and his whole life was of such 
a nature as to justify the statements that he was man 'Svhom to know was 
to love.'' 

Mehille C. Ensminger, son of Samuel J. and Mary (McGee) Ensmin- 
ger, was born November 19, 1842, on what is known as the old Ensminger 
homestead, northeast of Danville, Hendricks county, Indiana, and died No- 
vember II. iqoi, the result of injuries received in a railroad accident, which 
occurred between Danville and his home. He was descended from one of 
the pioneer families of the county, a history of which is given in the sketch 



698 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA 

of his brother, Samuel B. Ensminger, elsewhere in this volume. He grew to 
manhood on the farm where he was born and reared, receiving his edu- 
cation in the old Danville Academy. After leaving school he taught for 
twelve years, and in the meantime read law for three years with Col. Chris- 
tian Nave, of Danville, and was admitted to the bar. but never engaged in 
the active practice of the profession, spending his entire life upon the farm. 

Mr. Ensminger was married December 31, 1874. to Samantha A. Linein- 
ger, the daughter of Aaron and Margaret (Duzan) Lineinger. A sketch of 
the Lineinger family is given in the biographical mention of Alfred S. 
Lineinger, elsewhere in this work. Mrs. Ensminger was born and reared a 
short distance east of Danville and has lived in that neighborhood all her 
life. To this marriage have been born four children, three sons and one 
daughter, Mary, who died at the age of three months. The three sons are 
Julian, Aaron I\L and Chesley Bailey. Julian married Esta May Smith, the 
daughter of William and Viola Smith, and they live four miles northeast of 
Danville on one of the farms which was owned by his father. The other 
tw'o sons and Mrs. Ensminger live on the old home farm east of Danville. 
For two years after his marriage Mr. Ensminger continued to reside on the 
farm where he was born, at which time he moved to a farm which he inherited 
from his mother. From time to time he purchased more land and at the 
time of his death he was owner of two hundred and eighty-five acres of fine 
farming land. He built a fine, attractive home and had good barns and 
other outbuildings and all his farms were in first class shape in every par- 
ticular. He carried on extensive farming and stock raising and was con- 
sidered one of the most substantial farmers of the county, having farmed 
for many years about four hundred acres. 

Mr. Ensminger was a Republican in politics all his life and actively 
interested in the welfare of his party. He was a member of the Methodist 
Episcopal church, his father having been a Methodist minister, and he was 
reared in the faith of that denomination and was a liberal contriluitor to 
its support. He was a man of strong convictions, earnest, fearless and frank 
in his denunciation of what he considered was wrong. He w^as a man of 
strong domestic tastes, loving his family and home, and took great enjoy- 
ment in providing for his family. He was a close student and great reader, 
and a man whom it w^as a pleasure to meet. His life was well spent and 
affords a good example for the coming generation of the county. Aaron 
AL Ensminger, the son who remains on the home farm, is actively engaged 
in the buying and raising of shorthorn cattle and graded stock. 



fTENDRICKS COUNTY, iJNDiANA. 699 

CHARLES p. DUNCAN. 

Among the younger farmers of Hendricks county, Indiana, who have 
built up a comfortable home by their own efforts is Charles P. Duncan, of 
Liberty township, who was born June 12, 1880. on the farm where he is 
now living. His parents were William G. and Matilda (Barnes) Duncan. 
\\^illiam Duncan was a native of this county, his birth having occurred on 
June 21, 1843, a"d his death occurred June 17. 191 1. \\'illiam Duncan was 
the son of Charles and Delilah (Blunk) Duncan, and he spent his entire 
life in this county, with the exception of four years, when he was in the 
Civil War. He enlisted in 1861 in Company A, Thirty-third Regiment Indi- 
ana Volunteer Infantry, for the three-year service. His regiment was 
assigned to the Army of the Potomac, and after serving two and one-half 
years he re-enlisted and served until the end of the war, being mustered out 
in July. 1865, at Indianapolis. He was with Sherman on his famous march 
to the sea and took part in all those hard-fought battles and skirmishes which 
characterized that campaign. He was disabled and sent to the hospital on 
account of injuries, but recovered sufficiently to rejoin his regiment and be 
with them when they were mustered out. Immediately upon the close of 
the war William Duncan returned to this county and resumed farming. He 
was a prominent citizen of his township and served on the advisory board 
for some years. He was a member of the Christian church and a deacon in 
that denomination on all occasions. He \\as a strong believer in righteous 
living and upright conduct in all business affairs. 

The wife of William Duncan, Matilda Barnes, was a member of one 
of the pioneer families of this county. Her family history appears else- 
where in this volume in the sketch of W. D. Barnes, who is a brother of 
Mrs. Duncan. She is still living in Hazelwood, this county. 

Charles P. Duncan spent his boyhood days on the home farm south- 
west of Hazelwood and received his education in the district schools of 
his township. He has spent his whole life on the farm where he is now 
living with the exception of ten years he spent on a rented farm of one 
hundred and eight acres in Franklin township, this county. He now owns 
eighty acres, which includes the old farm, and is bringing the farm to a high 
state of cultivation by his skillful system of crop rotation. After leaving 
Franklin township, this county, he bought sixteen acres north of his present 
farm, but sold this in the fall of 19 13 before moving to where he now resides. 

Mr. Duncan was married March 31, 1902, to Nida Skaggs. a daughter 



700 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

of Lee and Anna (Kavanus) Skaggs. Lee Skaggs was born in Tennessee, 
and his wife was a native of Liberty township, this county. Mr. and Mrs. 
Skaggs are now !i\'ing at Indianapolis. Mr. and Mrs. Duncan are the parents 
of five chiklren, Ollan, who died at the age of five years, Lloyd, Chrystine, 
Pauline and Kathryn Dee. 

Mr. Duncan is an active Republican, but has never been identified as 
an aspirant for an}- public office. He and his wife are members of the Church 
of Christ at Hazelwood. and both take an active part in the affairs of their 
church. Mr. Duncan is a quiet, unassuming man, with a friendly disposition. 
Because of his high character he is respected by every one with whom he has 
been associated. He and his wife are the owners of a beautiful home, where 
thev entertan their manv friends with genuine hospitality. 



WILLIAM S. ELMORE. 



Hendricks county is widely known for its beautiful homes, rich, fertile 
farms, the high state of cultivation to which its land has been brought, and, 
above all, for the very active, progressive farmers who reside within her 
borders. These are business men in the best sense of the word — men who 
work with their hands to produce sustenance for their fellow men, as well 
as their own immediate families, yet guided by an active intelligence which 
lifts their toil above drudgery and places them in the front rank of our in- 
dependent, prominent citizens. In this admirable class of clean-cut, broad- 
minded men, few are better known throughout the county than the subject 
of our present sketch. Born in Franklin township, he has been ready to 
grasp the opportunities which lay nearest him, and by his unremitting energy 
has given to the world a large family of useful citizens and amassed for 
himself a competence. 

William S. Elmore, son of John and Mary (Wood) Elmore, was born 
October 23, 1864, and received his education in the schools of Franklin 
township. Here his youth was spent, living near to nature and learning 
from his father many of the principles of the science of agriculture; and 
that he has continued to study and put into practice these principles and 
theories is evidenced by his success as a farmer. 

On the 20th day of March, 1887, he was married to Ollie Tharp, a 
native of Center township, this county, a daughter of Joshua Tharp and 
wife; and after seven years of residence in the environment of his youth, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. /OI 

he brought his family to Middle township and there purchased his present 
home, a beautiful, productive, well-kept farm of eighty acres. Nine chil- 
dren have been born to them, as follows: Mabel (Mrs. Sparks), Cecil (who 
died in infancy), Roy. Gladys, Ova, Jesse, Byron, Charles and Robert. 

The father of the subject, John Elmore, is also one of the well known 
citizens of the county. One of the early pioneers, he has watched with 
pleasure the changes and improvements which ha\e come to the surround- 
ing country, and now. in his declining years, after a long and fruitful life, he 
is spending his days "l:ieneath his own vine and fig tree," the homestead 
where his family has lieen reared. Finding his greatest happiness in the 
independent life of the farm, he has spent his days tilling the soil, living 
near to the heart of !<*Iother Nature and rearing a large family to perpetuate 
his name and principles, and revere his memory in the future. 

John Elmore was born March ii. 1832, in Monroe county, coming to 
Hendricks county with his parents, Samuel and Elizabeth Elmore, in 1834, 
while he was vet a child. They made their permanent home in Eranklin 
township, where they entered land from the government. There John El- 
more grew up amid pioneer surroundings, later, however, purchasing a tract 
of land in Union township, where he has since remained. In the year 1853 
he was married to Mary Wood, who was also a native of this state. Six 
children were born to them, Jerry, Moses, William S.. Martha (\\'arren), 
Minnie (Montgomery) and Emaline (Foxworthy). In the year 1877 the 
faithful wife and mother passed away. About two years later he was mar- 
ried to Fanny Elmore, of Kentucky, and to them one child was born, a 
daughter. Elizabeth, now Mrs. Woodward. Mrs. Elmore died in July, 19 12. 
Mr. Elmore has been a home-loving man, devoting his time to the family, 
which has carried his influence al)road ; but he has also been interested in 
the various movements for the good of the community which have taken 
place during his long residence. A stanch Democrat, he has adhered strictly 
to the principles of his party, active in promulgating the principles of true 
Democracy at all times, and now happy in its supremacy. His son William, 
like his father, is a firm believer in the teachings of Jefferson, and has con- 
sistently voted the Democratic ticket. Fraternally, William is a member 
of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at Pittsboro, and, with his wife 
and four of his children, is a member of the Christian church of that place. 

Personally, the subject of this sketch is genial, broad minded and well 
informed, a man who holds the confidence of the community at large. ]\Irs. 
Elmore, who has been his best friend and most helpful ally in all his un- 



702 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

dertakings, has a charming personaHty and is widely known and greatly 
admired among the young people of the community, many of whom have 
enjoyed her hospitality. Taking a deep interest in the social, as well as the 
spiritual life of the church to which she is devoted, she is indeed a worthy 
helpmate for a prominent citizen. 



ROBERT E. PARKER. 



Middle township, Hendricks county, has Ijeen especially honored in 
the character and career of Robert E. Parker, who, in the face of obstacles 
that would have discouraged and defeated many another, has forged his 
way to the front by a strong inherent force and well directed intelligence 
and judgment and who for many years has ranked among the substantial 
and prominent men of this locality, few having occupied a more honored 
place in the estimation of his fellow citizens than he. He is a man of pub- 
lic spirit, who, while laboring for his individual advancement, has never 
neglected his broader duties to the public in general, and his character has 
been exemplary in all the relations of life. 

Robert E. Parker, the son of William G. and Martha (Wells) Parker, 
was born in Pittsboro, Indiana, in 1863. William Parker was a native of 
Kentucky and when a small boy came to this county with his parents. Upon 
reaching manhood he remained on the farm for a time and later engaged in 
the mercantile business in Pittsboro for a number of years. During the 
war he bought and shipped mules for the government and throughout his whole 
life he was interested in tlie buying and selling of stock. In 1872 William 
Parker moved to Indianapolis, but four years later moved back to Pittsboro, 
where he remained until his death, January 8, 1877. While he was pri- 
marily interested in business ventures of one kind and another, he was, 
nevertheless, greatly interested in politics and always took a prominent part 
in the affairs of his community. He was trustee of his township for eight 
years and was always active in Republican politics. Mrs. William Parker 
was born in North Carolina and came in a wagon to this county with her 
parents when she was a small girl. She is still living in Pittsboro. Mr. 
and Mrs. William Parker reared a family of nine children: Mrs. Mary E. 
Lewis; Loyd; Wilson; Jennie, deceased; Robert E., whose history is herein 
presented; William; Ruth, deceased, and two who died in infancy. 

Robert E. Parker received his education in the school of Pittsboro and 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 7O3 

Indianapolis, a part of the time in Indianapolis, while his parents were liv- 
ing there from 1872 to 1876, and later in Pittsboro. Upon the death of his 
father in 1877, he went on to the home farm, where he has resided since. 
In addition to his general farming, he also raises hogs and good road horses, 
which he finds a very successful and lucrative part of his farming. 

Mr. Parker was married August 21, i8qo. to Mary E. Dillon, a native 
of Middle township, daughter of Luke and Julia (Ashby) Dillon, and to 
this marriage were born three children, Chester, Margaret, deceased, and 
Edgar. On January 22, 1905, Mr. Parker was married to Cora Keeney, 
the daughter of Charles and Elizabeth (Bursott) Keeney. Charles Keeney 
is a native of Montgomery county, Indiana, and now lives with his son-in- 
law, Mr. Parker. He owns a farm in Raintown. Mrs. Keeney was a na- 
tive of Kentucky and died in 1909. Air. and Mrs. Keeney had eight chil- 
dren: Mrs. Sarah J. Money, David D., Mrs. Olive Ann Ellis, Cora (the 
wife of Mr. Parker). Orin F., George, and two who died in infancy. 

Mr. Parker takes a keen interest in politics and has been identified with 
the Republican party since he was able to cast his first ballot. He has never 
been tempted to make the race for any office, being content to devote his 
time to his agricultural interests. He is a member of the Free and Accepted 
Masons and is a devout member of the Christian church, in which he has 
been a deacon for many years. Mrs. Parker is a member of the Baptist 
church. His earnest labors and honest dealings with his fellow men have 
resulted in a large measure of success in a material way, and at the same 
time he has won the confidence and admiration of his neighbors and fellow 
men. 



CHARLES EVERETT KESLER. 

The prosperity of a town depends in large measure upon the activity 
and aggressiveness of its business men, and Pittsboro, in this respect, is to 
be congratulated upon the progressive, energetic spirit shown by her mer- 
chants. Among these few, if any, are more widely known throughout the 
district nor more highly respected than the man who supplies the hardware, 
tools and farming implements of various kinds used in the surrounding 
country. 

Charles Everett Kesler, the leading hardware dealer of this place, was 
born April 7, 1881, on a farm near Danville, Hendricks county. He is 
truly a son of the county, both parents. John C. and Sarah (Pierson) Kes- 



704 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ler, being also native to the place. Here they both spent their childhood 
and vouth, receiving their schooling in the township schools; both trained 
to the free, natural life of the farm, finding not only their work but their 
pleasure also in compelling the good earth to yield her abundance for the 
sustenance of themselves and their family. Congenial in their tastes, both 
were content to remain in the home of their childhood and youth until, in 
1908, they were separated by the death of the faithful wife. Five children 
were born to them, as follows: Nettie (Dinsmore), deceased; Myrtle 
(Woods); Novella; Ernest, deceased also; and Charles Everett, the subject 
of this article. 

Charles Everett Kesler was married October 11, 1900, to Lucena Dins- 
more, daughter of William Frank and Racliel (Holmes) Dinsmore. Two 
sons have come to them to brighten their home. Floyd Eugene and Harrold 
Glenn. Mrs. Kesler was born and reared in Boone county, as were also both 
her parents, who are still residing in that place, being well known and gen- 
erally respected. Mr. Dinsmore is the holder of eighty acres of well cul- 
tivated, productive land, and by his industry, thrift and intelligent manage- 
ment of this farm, together with the never failing assistance of his faithful 
helpmate, he reared a large family and laid up for his declining years a 
competence. Fourteen children have been born to them : Jacob, Eliza 
(Ragsdale). John. Charity (Bailiff), Mary (Linton), Dora (Griggs), 
Marion, Delia (Wiley), Lucena (Kesler), Artie, and four others whom 
death has claimed, two of them in infancy. 

Mr. Kesler spent his boyhood days upon the farm with his father, 
receiving his elementary education in the township school and later attend- 
ing the high school of Pittsboro. Here he remained until his marriage, 
when he left the farm and entered the grocery business at New Ross. After 
two years in this place, he sold the grocery and spent a year at Advance 
as proprietor of a livery barn. Disposing of this, he returned to Pittsboro, 
continuing in the livery business, however, for two years more. Follow- 
ing this, he was owner of a restaurant for a year, after which he acquired 
his present thriving establishment. His varied experiences in the business 
world and his wide acf[uaintance throughout the county have proven valu- 
able assets in this field, and his genial manner and shrewd business acumen 
have been large factors in its upbuilding. Hence, after five years as an 
active, energetic dealer in hardware and implements, we find him crowned 
with success in business, the possessor of hosts of friends and enjoying to 
the fullest the confidence and respect of his fellow men. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 705 

However, his activities have not been confined solely to the upbuilding 
of his financial success, for he is interested in several fraternal orders, 
being- a member of the Knights of Pythias at Brownsburg; the Red Men 
at Advance, and the Haymakers. He is affiliated with the Republican party 
and is a strong advocate of its doctrines, and, while not a member of any 
church, is in sympathy with the Baptist church of Pittsboro, where his wife 
is a member. 



GEORGE D. JUNKEN. 



That life is the most commendable that results in the greatest good 
to the greatest number, and of the thousands of occupations which are open 
to the citizens of the United States today, there is no one in which there is 
a better chance to help mankind than in the profession of teaching. It is 
not necessary that one have a college education, a fine brick building and a 
well stocked library in order to make a successful teacher. What is essen- 
tial is that natural sympathy and tact which always characterizes the most 
successful teachers. In the record of George D. Junken, of Hendricks 
county, we have the life history of a man who has spent thirty-five years 
of the best part of his life instructing the youths of his county, and during 
all of those years he has tried to instill the right principles, aim and ideals 
into his pupils. His actions have always been the result of careful, con- 
scientious thought, and, once convinced that he is right, no suggestion of 
policy or personal profit could swerve him from the course on which he 
had decided. 

George D. Junken, who is now living retired at Pittsboro, this county, 
was born in Middle township November 8, 1850. His parents were David 
A. and Margaret (Banner) Junken. David A. Junken was born Decem- 
ber 24, 1825. in Wayne county, Indiana, and lived there until his marriage. 
He and the girl whom he had selected for his wife added to the gaiety of 
the country in 1847 by being married on July 4th of that year, and imme- 
diately after the ceremony mounted their horses and took their honeymoon 
trip through the dense forests and along the blazed trails to this state, and 
after a short time in Rush county, they settled in Middle township, 
this county. David's father had been here before this time and had entered 
about twelve hundred acres for his children near Pittsboro. so that the 

(45) 



7o6 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

young bridal couple already had a farm to settle upon when they reached 
their destination. David was a blacksmith and a mechanic of more than or- 
dinary al)ility and followed this trade in Pittsboro for the first fifteen years 
after coniins;" to this county. He then went onto the farm and continued 
to farm until 1883, when he went into the hardware and grocery business 
at Pittsboro. Eight years later he sold out a successful business and retired 
from active life. He built the fine brick business block where his store was 
established. He had commenced in a rented brick building, which burned 
down two years after he went in business, and then he built the brick build- 
ing which is still standing in Pittsboro. About two years after he sold out 
the store he went blind, but suffered his terrible affliction patiently until the 
end. He died March 18, 1907, and his wife two years later. Both of them 
were consistent and devoted members of the Christian church and he was 
a member of the Masonic order. Mr. and Mrs. David Junken reared a 
familv of seven children : James, who died in infancy, George D.. Joseph 
M., William N., Oliver P., Alonzo Frank, and one who died in infancy. 

George D. Junken spent his boyhood days in Middle township and re- 
ceived his education in the township and high school at Brownsburg. Later 
he began teaching in 1870 and for the next thirty-three years taught in 
Middle and Brown townships, teaching his last year in 1905. During this 
long service in the school room, he taught the children of some of the chil- 
dren who had gone to him in his earlier years of teaching. 

For the past eight years he has done the assessing" and gathering of 
statistics of his township, and knows his township most thoroughly. Prob- 
ablv he could describe every piece of land from memory, and tell the own- 
ers thereof. His work was said by the county board to be the most accu- 
rate, and his records kept the best, of any assessment records in the county. 

Mr. Junken is a member of Pittsboro Lodge No. 620, Free and Ac- 
cepted Masons, and of Danville Chapter No. 46, Royal Arch Masons, and 
has been a life-long Republican, although, due to the nature of his profes- 
sion, he has never taken an active interest in politics. He and his wife are 
both members of the Christian church at Pittsboro and he has been an elder 
in the church for the past twenty years. He has often been called on to 
conduct the services at funerals, knows the people thoroughly, and for years 
past has written the obituaries of most of those who have died in his com- 
munity. 

Mr. Junken was married October 24, 1875, to Sallie J. Waters, and to 
this union have been born two children, Mrs. Gertrude Goebel and Mrs. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 'JO'] 

Lutie J. Worrell. Mr. Junken is a quiet, unassuming man and no one in 
the township has a higher standing in every way than he. His influence 
has always been cast in favor of all worthy enterprises and measures, and 
everything which he has done has been directed toward the betterment of 
his community. 



JAMES MALREY LEAK. 

A half century ago, more than two hundred thousand of Indiana's 
young men, strong and active in body, exulting in their young manhood, 
offered themselves for their country's service, and of these many thousands 
who went from Indiana there are today but few left and these few are old 
men who have long ago passed their meridian and are now looking eagerly 
forward to the time when they will answer the last roll call. The soldiers 
who fought so bravely in the Civil War soon will all have passed to another 
world, but so long as this nation shall endure, their memory will be re- 
vered high above other men. Hendricks county sent many brave young 
men to the front, but no man fought more valiantly than James M. Leak, 
who, through four long years of hard service, participated in some of the 
bloodiest battles of the war. Although he was twice wounded before his 
four years' enlistment was up, yet such was his courage and patriotism that 
he re-enlisted in February, 1865, as a substitute and served until his final 
discharge at Louisville, Kentucky, in 1865. 

James Malrey Leak, a distinguished veteran of the Civil War and one 
of Hendricks county's best loved citizens, was born October 20, 1841, in 
Bracken county, Kentucky. His parents were Louis and Elizabeth Leak, 
who were both natives of Kentucky. Louis Leak was born in Kentucky in 
1808, grew to manhood and was married there before coming to this county. 
Early in the history of this county he and his family entered eighty acres 
in Union township, north of Lizton, where he farmed until his death. He 
was a public-spirited citizen and was township trustee for several terms. 
He and his wife were both members of the Christian church. Mr. and 
Mrs. Lewis Leak were the parents of nine children : Mrs. Susan Jane Run- 
nels, who died in 1859; David V., who married Julia Ann Waters and died 
September 4, 1912; Belle, deceased, the wife of Allen Hayden; John Rob- 
ert, deceased ; James Malrey, whose career is herein set forth ; Francis Ma- 
rion, born January 15. 1843. ^"<^ ^^^^ ^" April, 1903; William M., of Mis- 



7o8 



HENORICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



souri, .licil in 191 1; Nancy Ann, of Danville, the wife of Allen Bell and 
Mnierva, who was the wife of Woodson Bell, died in 1867. 

James Malrey Leak grew to manhood on the old home farm and when 
twenty years of age enlisted for service under his country's flag He was 
mustered mto Company H. Seventh Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry 
for three years, in August, 1861, and was first assigned to the Army of the 
West, but later transferred to the East and his regiment was made a part 
of the Army of the Potomac. While serving in. Virginia he was twice 

House 4t ""'%'''-^l^' ^f f"^ ^^P ^-' '^'- -' Spotsylvania Court 
House. At Lou.svdle, Kentucky, at the end of his three years' enlistment, 
•he re-enhsted ,n February, 1865, as a substitute for a man who was drafted 
.n th,s county. While acting as a substitute, he received five hundred dol- 
lars m money and a <leed for forty acres of land in Union township He 
was finally nntstered out August 27. 1865, at Louisville. Kentuckv ' after 
havmg seen four years of service in the midst of the bloodiest civil war 
which has ever happened in the history of the world 

Immediately after his discharge. Mr. Leak returned to th,s co.inty and 
commenced arming in Union township. He was married August 6, 1865 
to Mary Dtckey, who died November 9, ,872. leaving one dattghter, Vadf ' 
Vada marned John A. Leak, whose history is delineated elsewhere in this 
volume James M. Leak was married a second time to Margaret (David- 
son Wtnters who died February 15, ,899. There were two children born 
to th.s second marr.age, Eva, who died December 24, 1887, and Omer a 
armer of this township, who married Bessie Walter, having one dau<.hter 
Lurene. After the death of his second wife, Mr. Leak was mar led to 
Mrs. Frances (Gott) Hedge. "wrnea to 

Mr^ Leak continued in active service on the farm until December 

905. when he .-et.red from the farm and moved to Linton. Politically, Mr' 

Leak ,s a Republican of the progressive type, and has been voting the Re- 

pubhcat, ticket ever since the days of Abraham Lincoln. While he has al 

w-ay-s taken an intelligent interest in politics, he has never been a seeker after 

..ica preferments^ He is a member of the Grand Army of the Repubhc 
at Lizton. He and his wife are members of the Christian church and he is 
a deacon m that denomination. He is a man who is always willing to help 

ose ,n distress and has lived a life of a quiet, unostentatious farLr ev r 
since the day he returned from the battle field of the si.xties. He is an idea 
citizen in every respect and is highly honored and respected by every one 
in the community. ^ ^'y uuc 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 709 



CHESTER ALVIN WEAVER. 



It is generally considered by those in the habit of superficial thinking 
that the history of so-called great men only is worthy of preservation and 
that little merit exists among the masses to call forth the praises of the his- 
torian or the cheers and the appreciation of mankind. A greater mistake 
was never made. No man is great in all things. Many by a lucky stroke 
achieve lasting fame who before that had no reputation beyond the limits 
of their immediate neighborhoods. It is not a history of the lucky stroke 
which benefits humanity most, but the long study and effort which made 
the lucky stroke possible. It is the preliminary work, the method, that 
serves as a guide for the success of others. Among those in Monroe county 
who have achieved success along steady lines of action is the subject of this 

sketch. 

Chester Alvin Weaver, former merchant of Pittsboro and now one of 
the leading farmers of Middle township, was born in Pittsboro, Indiana, 
December 7. 1867. He is the son of Amos C. and Marian (Wills) Weaver. 
Amos Weaver is also a native of this township and is now living retired in 
Indianapolis. He formerly operated a drug store at Pittsboro for five years, 
afterwards he built a store building and engaged in the dry-goods business 
in 1872. continuing this for the next thirty years. Mrs. Amos C. Weaver 
was also a native of this county and is still living. Mr. and Mrs. Amos 
Weaver are the parents of five children. Hollis, Chester Alvin, Mrs. Grace 
Wood. Urban and Mrs. Francis Kyle. 

Chester Alvin Weaver received his early education in the Pittsboro 
schools. Upon reaching his maturity he went into his father's store. In 
1887 his father sold out to his sons and they continued to operate the store 
for the next ten years. In 1897 Chester Alvin bought out the interest of 
his brothers and managed the store himself until 1905, continued to live in 
Pittsboro three years after selling the store and then bought a farm 01 one 
hundred and sixty acres, one mile northeast of Pittsboro, where he is now 
residing. He handles a great deal of stock, buying and selling all the time. 
He also makes a specialty of raising chickens and turkeys, and has his farm 
improved in such a way as to net him the largest maximum income an- 
nually. While he was prosperous as a business man, he is no less suc- 
cessful in the agricultural field, and is rapidly forging to the front as one 
of the leading farmers of the township. 

Mr. Weaver was married September 16, 1897, to Nell Dillon, the 



710 HENDRICK.S COUNTY, INDIANA. 

daughter of Luke and Julia (Ashby) Dillon. Luke Dillon, a native of Ken- 
tucky, and a Union soldier, came to this county immediately after the war 
and settled in Middle township a1)Out one and one-half miles west of Pitts- 
boro. He dealt a great deal in real estate. He returned to Hillsboro, Ken- 
tucky, about 1900, where he is still living. Mrs. Dillon was also a fnative 
of Kentucky, and died in 1897. -^'^r. and Mrs. Dillon were the parents of 
nine children: Mrs. Mary Elizabeth Parker, deceased; Edwin; Nellie, the 
wife of Mr. Weaver; Thomas L. ; Mrs. Daise Buergelin; Mrs. Margaret 
Leachman; Mrs. Emma Biggs; Mrs. Lora Duntington and Mrs. Ruth 
Pavey. Mr. and Mrs. Weaver have a daughter, Frances, and a son, Marvin. 
Mr. Weaver is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons and the 
Knights of Pythias. Owing to the nature of his business he has never taken 
an active part in politics, although he now takes more interest in public 
affairs than ever before. He is a member of the new Progressive party and 
believes in the principles which are advocated by the leaders of this party. 
He and his family are members of the Christian church, to which they give 
freely of their means. Mr. Weaver is a farmer who has gone into this 
profession simjjly because he likes it and enjoys the life which is the lot of 
the farmer. He is a man of excellent judgment, good business discrimina- 
tion and one who is thoroughly honest and upright in all of his dealings. 
In his county he represents the Home, Hartford and Phoenix fire insurance 
companies and does a large amount of business throughout the county. Mr. 
Weaver is widely acquainted and numbers his friends everywhere through- 
out the countv. 



CALVIN WARRICK. 



As a farmer, public official, soldier or private citizen, Calvin Warrick 
was always true to himself and his fellow men, and the tongue of calumny 
has never touched him. As a soldier he proved his loyalty to the govern- 
ment he loved so well on the long and tiresome marches in all kinds of situ- 
ations, on the tented field and amid the flame and smoke of battle, where 
the rattle of the musketry, mingled with the terrible concussion of the 
bursting shell and the deep diapason of the cannon's roar, made up the 
awful chorus of death. To such as he the country is under a debt of grati- 
tude which it can not repay and in centuries yet to be posterity will com- 
memorate their chivalry in fitting eulogy and tell their deeds in story and 
in song. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 7II 

Calvin Warrick, a distinguished veteran of the Civil War and a pros- 
perous farmer of Middle township, was born in Rush county, Indiana, Oc- 
tober 19, 1840. His parents were Edward H. and Ruth (Whiteman) War- 
rick. Edward Warrick was a native of Delaware and a school teacher in 
his young days, and taught in Rush county before moving to Hendricks 
county. He came to this county when Calvin was about four years of age 
and bought eighty acres two miles north of Brownsburg. which he farmed 
until 1858. Pie then sold it and made a prospecting trip through the West, 
but decided that Indiana was good enough for him, and returned to Hen- 
dricks county where he bought two hundred acres in Middle township. He 
lived on this farm until his death, October 30, 1864. Mrs. Edward War- 
rick was a native of Virginia and died in Nebraska in December, 19 lo. Mr, 
and Mrs. Edward H. Warrick were the parents of eight children : Samuel, 
who died in 1912. Mrs. Ann Crawford, Calvin, Amos, Mrs. Esther E. 
Hale, Mrs. Mary Jane Job, Mrs. Harriet Talbott, and Mrs Madora Towell. 

Calvin Warrick was given a good education under the tutelage of his 
father and grew to manhood on the farm in this county, with the exception 
of a year or so spent in the West. Upon the outbreak of the Civil War he 
enlisted, on September 14, 1861, in Company B, Seventh Regiment Indiana 
Volunteer Infantry. His regiment was attached to the Army of the Po- 
tomac and he participated in all of the engagements in which his regiment 
participated, and was mustered out December 20, 1864. 

On December 14th of the same year Mr. Warrick was married to Eva- 
line Smith, the daughter of Joel and Susan Smith. Joel Smith was a native 
of Kentucky, as was his wife, and after their marriage they came to this 
county and entered two hundred acres near Brownsburg, where they lived 
until their deaths. He died in 1863 and she seven years later. Mr. and 
Mrs. Joel Smith were the parents of eleven children: William Jackson; 
Benjamin Thomas; Mrs. Almanda Rupp ; Mrs. Nancy Susan Wells: Levi; 
Alfred, deceased; America; Lucinda, deceased: E\'aline, the wife of Mr. 
Warrick; Mrs. Henrietta Ward and Mrs. Mary Ann Hughes. Mr. and 
Mrs. \\'arrick have five children, all of whom are living. Shiles M., William 
E., Oliver C, Edward H. and Mary May. Mary May married Fred Parker, 
who farmed a part of Mr. Warrick's farm. 

Mr. Warrick has farmed in this county since he was sixteen years of 
age, with the exception of the four years which he spent in the war. When 
a boy he had to walk two miles to school and incidentally had to perform 
all of those chores which the boys of his day had to perform each day. In 



712 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



addition to his o-eneral farmino- he lip« aK,rn„. i n i 

'cii.iuii^ ue nas always handled a "reaf rlpal r.f i,-,.^ 

sto<.^, especiall, cattie. He a.wa,s .ep. a-high-Cass graVe of Ho:: 

Mr Warrick- is a n.ember of the Grand Army of the Republic and th. 
Free and Accepted Masons at Pittsboro H^ h=,o k '^«P"D1ic and the 

FRANCIS H. HALL. 

The character of a con.nnmky is determined laro-elv bv the U. ' . 
comparatively fexy of its members Tf ,> T f ' ^ '^' °^ ^ 

«ho„, thev Je I paa ?tr'T-";", f'^'" ''^ '"'^^ "' *°- -"" 
. liin^ie. in placmg the subject ot this sketch in the fronf ro,.i r 

"n,n,ty, wh, e h,s ad.nirable qt,alities of head and heart and the strati f"" 
ward .,pr,ght course of his daily life have tended greatlv to the .norarstand 
2 of .:« crcles in wl,ich he „,oves and given hin, a reputation for , ttr t 
and correct conduct such as few achieve. "«e^nty 

Francis H. Hall was born in Canfield, Ohio. January 28 ,8™ Hi, 
parents were SoIon,on and Maria (Austin) Hall, his' father being a Ltive o 
^ew^ork state and h,s n,other of Connecticut. Solon,on Hall vas a card! 
and fuller by trade and, when a yo.n,g „,an. cante west and settled in O n'o 
where he marr.ed. In ,849 he went to Iowa with his fannh-, when Francis 
H. was about eleven years of age. He remained in Iowa about three jears 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 713 

when he returned to the east, setthng in Wells county, Indiana. After a three 
years' residence in that county, he removed to Danville in the spring of 1856. 
and subse(|uently moved to Needmore, about five miles west of Danville. A 
few years later he moved to Groveland, in Putnam county, Indiana, where he 
engaged in the mercantile business, and there he spent the remainder of his 
life, death occurring at the age of eighty-two years. Mr. and .Mrs. Solomon 
Hall were the parents of nine children, five of whom are still living: Mrs. 
Ella Dooley, who is living in California; Mrs. Sarah J. Blatchley, of Putnam 
county, Indiana; Chester F.. of Danville; Seldon, of Alexandria, Indiana, and 
Francis H.. of whom this is written. 

Francis H. Hall received his education in three different states, Ohio, 
Iowa and Indiana, and, being a youth of observing mind, he acquired no 
inconsiderable education from the extensive journeys made bv his parents 
back and forth across the Mississippi valley. At the opening of the Civil 
war in 1861 he enlisted in Company H. Forty-seventh Regiment Indiana 
\'olunteer Infantry, and served three years and nineteen days with the Union 
army. He was with General Grant at Fort Henry, Fort Donelson, Shiloh, 
luka and was in the terrific siege of Vicksburg in 1863. He was a participant 
in the battle of Champion's Hill, Mississippi, which history has recorded as 
the bloodiest battle of the whole struggle. He was with General Banks on 
his campaign in Arkansas and Oklahoma, being in the ordnance department 
at that time. He proved a valiant and courageous soldier and served faith- 
fullv in all the engagements in which his regiment was a participant. After 
the close of the war he returned to Putnam county. Indiana, where he engaged 
in agricultural pursuits, and began to make a specialty of fine cattle to feed for 
the markets. He claims to be the oldest cattle feeder in Hendricks county, 
having fed a bunch of cattle each year for the market for the past forty-three 
years without missing a single year. In 1897 he came to Danville to spend 
the remainder of his days, but he still keeps in close touch with his farm in 
Putnam count}-, on which his son is now residing. In addition to his farm- 
ing and stock raising interests, Mr. Hall is president of the Danville State 
Bank, and is now serving his second term in that capacity. 

Mr. Hall was married in 1866 to Rebecca Keith, and to this union has 
been born one son, Owen Hall, who manages his father's farm in Putnam 
county and also has a farm of his own adjoining his father's. Mr. and Mrs. 
Hall had one son. Homer S., who died at the age of thirty-four in Monrovia, 
California. He was a brilliant and promising young man, a graduate of De- 
Pauw and Leland Stanford Universities, and was building up a fine reputation 
as a civil engineer. 



714 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Mr. and Mrs. Hall are devoted and consistent members, he of the Presby- 
terian and she of the Methodist church at Danville and contribute generously 
(if their means to these societies. Mr. Hall has been voting the Re])ul)lican 
ticket for more than fifty years and, although he has been active in the councils 
of his party, he has never been a candidate for public office. Mr. Hall has 
al\va}'S been a man of high civic ideals and a warm and sympathetic supporter 
of all measures and enterprises tending to advance the general welfare of the 
community. He was truly the architect of his own fortune, and upon his 
entire career there rests no blemish, for he has always been true to the highest 
ideals and principles in business, moral and social life and has been one of 
the world's noble army of workers, ha\'ing lived and labored to worthy ends. 



JOSEPH FLEECE CLAY. 

One of the most distinguished families which has come to the United 
States from Scotland is the Clay family. Their descendants are now found 
scattered throughout the United States. Among the most distinguished mem- 
bers of this family may be mentioned Henry and Cassius M. Clay, of Ken- 
tucky, men who were leaders in national life when they were in the height 
of their career. One of the members of this family who was born in Hend- 
ricks county, Indiana, and has brought honor on the county of his birth is 
Joseph Fleece Clay, who was formerly a sheriff of Marion county, but now 
a resident of Putnam county, Indiana. 

Joseph F. Clay, the son of James Henry and Susan ( Fleece ) Clay, was 
born in Hendricks county September i. 1865. His father was born in Bour- 
bon county, Kentucky, January 20. 18 19, the son of Littleberry and Arabella 
(McCoun) Clay. James H. Clay and Susan Fleece were married July 29, 
1841. their marriage taking place shortly after his parents arrived in this 
county. Littleberry Clay and his family came to this county in 1840 and pur- 
chased a section of land in Eel River township. After living in this county 
a few years Littleberry Clay and part of his family went to Alissouri, but 
James H. remained in this county the remainder o'f his days. Susan Fleece 
was born in Boyle county, Kentucky, near Danville, and came to Hamilton 
county with her parents, Charles Fleece and wife, in the early history of the 
county. Her parents entered land west of North Salem, near Eel river. 

James H. Clay followed the vocation of a farmer all his life. During 
the forty years of his residence in this county he was one of the prominent 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 715 

and influential citizens. At one time he owned nearly a section of land, but 
before his death he divided it among his children, nine of whom grew to 
maturity : Airs. Arabella \Vaters ; Mrs. Mary Catherine Rose ; Samuel C. ; 
Mrs. Sallie Rogers, of Amo ; James A., of Indianapolis; J. C, whose history 
is found elsewhere in this volume; Nicholas, deceased; Arthur E., of Indian- 
apolis; Joseph F., whose history' is here recorded, and one daughter, Lillie, 
who died in infancy. 

Joseph F. Clay was educated in the common schools of Fel Ri\-er town- 
ship and later attended the graded school at North Salem. Earlv in life he 
decided to follow the vocation which had brought such pronounced success 
to his father. After his marriage he began to farm and ai the same time 
devote a great deal of attention to the raising of stock. In fact, he soon 
found that there was more money in the raising of stock than in the raising 
of grain, and within a few years left the farm and moved to Indianapolis, 
where he engaged in the li\'e stock business in connection with Alessrs. Stock- 
ton & Gillespie, the firni being known as Stockton, Gillespie, Clay & Company. 
He was connected with this company for the next thirteen years, and left it to 
take the office of sheriff of Marion county, to which he was elected in the fall 
of 1906. He served one term and then returned to his farm in Jackson 
township, Putnam county, where he is the owner of four hundred and seventy 
acres of fine farming land. He is now engaged in farming and stock breed- 
ing, paying most of his attention to stock. 

Mr. Clav was married February 15, 1888, to 01i\'e Thomas, daughter of 
John H. and Mary (Davidson) Thomas. John H. Thomas was a life-long 
farmer <)f Putnam county, this state, dying in that county at the age of 
sevent\'-three in 1903. To Mr. and Mrs. Clay has been born one daughter, 
Eula, the v,ife of Armin Krutzsh, who is now living on the farm of yiv. Clay. 
Mrs. Clay died March 11, 1911. 

Air. Clay has been an active Republican in politics and has been influential 
in the councils of his party. His worth as a citizen and his abflity as a man 
is shown by the fact that he was nominated by the Republicans of Marion 
county for the responsible position of county sheriff and subsequently elected 
to that important position. In the discharge of his duties he was fearless 
and honest and won the esteem of all with whom he was associated while in 
the management of his office. He is a member of the Third Christian church 
at Indianapolis. Fraternally, he is a member of the Free and Accepted 
Masons, belonging to Oriental Lodge at Indianapolis. He is also a member 
of Paper Commandery, Knights Templar, Keystone Chapter of Royal Arch 
Masons and the Mystic Shrine at Indianapolis. He also holds his member- 



yi6 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ship in the Cokimbia Club and Marion Ckib, two of the most influential clubs 
of the capital city. Mr. Clay has been remarkably successful in life, and in 
everything lie has done he has commanded the respect and confidence of all 
those with whom he has been brought into contact. His life amply demon- 
strates what may be accomplished by a man of energy and ambition who is 
not afraid to work, his success being the result of his w^ell directed efforts, his 
capable management of his Inisiness interests and his soimd judgment. 



ETHOR V. MILHON. 



A business man of Hazelwood. Indiana, who has made a pronounced suc- 
cess in life is Ethor V. Alilhon, who. In- the exercise of keen business ability 
and honest dealings, has built up a trade in a small town which is little short 
of marvelous. There are some men who are naturally gifted with the busi- 
ness instinct and this fortunate characteristic is the secret of the success of 
Mr. Milhon. Starting with a very small store, he has gradually worked up 
to a position where he has a business which is out of all proportion to the size 
of the town where he is located. In addition to his business interests, he has 
not failed to take a ])rominent part in the l)ody politic, and every w^orthy enter- 
prise which is for the good of the pul)lic has found in him a sympathetic and 
ready helper. His life has squared with right ideals, and for this reason he 
is highly esteemed by a large circle of friends and acquaintances. 

The postmaster, merchant and banker of Hazehvood was born in Liberty 
tounship, near Hazelwood, Hendricks county, Indiana, on No\'ember 26, 
1870, the son of George \V. and Susan Catherine (Richardson) Milhon, who 
were among the most highly esteemed residents of this township. George W. 
Milhon was born January 3, i8-:|3, in Belmont county, Ohio, the son of George 
and Mary Ann (Hatbringer) Milhon. George Milhon, Sr., was a native of 
Virginia, and was born near Winchester, in that state, October 16, 181 2. His 
wife was born in the same state August 12, 1812, and after their marriage 
George Milhon and wife left Virginia and settled in Belmont county, Ohio, 
where they farmed for several years and then came to Indiana, settling in 
Nashville, Brown county. In i860 they came to Hendricks county and settled 
in Liberty township. Here George Milhon, Sr., followed farming, but after 
two years returned to Nashville in Brown count)-, this state, where his death 
occurred December 30, 1879. while his wife died on the first day of the year 
1880. He and his wife were loval members of the Methodist Episcopal 



HENDRICKS COUN'IY, INDIANA. 717 

church and they reared a family of eleven children : Sarah Elizabeth, de- 
ceased : Airs. Rebecca Jane Doan ; John Henry, deceased; Mrs. Rachel Anna 
Marshall; Georj^e W., the father of the subject of this review; Martha Ann, 
deceased; Norris ; Jane; James; Mrs. Alary Catherine Purcell and Mrs. 
Lucinda Davis. George W. Milhon was married January 20; 1870, to Susan 
Catherine Richardson, daughter of \\'illiam B. and Alary E. (Hurd) Richard- 
son. William Richardson was a native of North Carolina and came to Hend- 
ricks county. Indiana, with his parents. Daniel and Dorcas Richardson, in the 
early history of the county. The Richardsons entered one hundred and sixty 
acres of government land in the county and on this farm V\'illiam Richardson 
grew to manhood. He was born December g. 1831, and died in November, 
1881, in this county. His wife was born near Frankfort, Kentucky, October 
30, 1 83 1, and is still living. Air. and Airs. W^illiam B. Richardson were mar- 
ried November 24, 1850, and to their union were born seven children: Airs. 
Alilhon ; Airs. Alartha Jane Oliphant ; Airs. Elizabeth D. Barnes ; Joshua 
Newton: William Alfred, deceased; Airs. Alary Elizabeth Hiatt, deceased, 
and Mrs. Emma Burzite. Airs. Richardson has twenty-nine grandchildren 
and eight great-grandchildren. Air. and Airs. George William Alilhon are the 
parents of seven children, live living and two deceased; Ethor V.. whose his- 
tory is here presented ; Airs. Effie Alay Cooper, deceased ; Everett Newton ; 
Mrs. Alary E. Stout; Alaude A., deceased; Mrs. Hattie B. Patterson and 
James W. Everett Newton Alilhon married Hattie AA'rightman and lives in 
Mooresville. Indiana, where he is chief engineer and superintendent of the 
telephone company of that place, and has two children. Irvin and Roy ; Mary 
E. Alilhon married Calvin Stout, of Hazelwood, a farmer and the president 
of the Hazelwood Bank, and has one child, Lenore ; Hattie D. Alilhon mar- 
ried Alark Patterson, a farmer living east of Hazelwood, and they have two 
sons, Ralph and Maurice ; James \\\ Alilhon married Alaude Johnson and they 
hve on a farm of this township, and have one child. Sylvan J. 

George ^^'illiam Alilhon enlisted in June, 1862, in Company H. Fifty- 
fourth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, for the three-months service 
in the Union army in Kentucky and served four months before he was dis- 
charged. He then returned to Hendricks county and has lived the life of a 
farmer since. He is the owner of a fine farm of one hundred and seventy 
acres, most of which lies in Hendricks county. He and his wife are zealous 
members of the Regular Baptist church of Center Valley, and have rendered 
generous assistance to the church in every way. Air. Alilhon came to this 
countv without a cent and has achieved success solely through his own de- 



yjS> HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

termination and s(juare business dealings. He has l)onght and sold much 
stock and has shipped hundreds of car loads from this countv. He is a man 
well liked by every one and is still in good health and enjoying life. 

Ethor V. Milhon spent his boyhood days on the home farm and received 
a practical education in the schools of Liberty township. After finishing the 
common school course he graduated from a l)usiness college at Indianapolis, 
and the business education which he there received has been of incalculable 
benefit to him in his later career. Early in his life he started in the grocery 
business at Hazehvood with a small stock of about three hundred dollars 
worth of goods and went into debt for this. His store was only a small box 
of a place, but by hard work and square dealings he has met with w^onderful 
success. He gradually built up his store, increased his stock, secured better 
buildings and, later on, took in C. E. Shields as a partner. The firm of Mil- 
lion & Shields continued for about four years and then Mr. Milhon bought 
out his partner's interest and continued to conduct the business alone. In 
1898 Mr. Milhon erected a modern two-story brick building, one hundred by 
thirty feet in size, and moved his stock of goods into this. The second floor 
is used by the Improved Order of Red Men. 

In addition to his mercantile interests, Mr. Milhon is interested in the 
banking business in Hazehvood. He was elected cashier of the Hazehvood 
Bank in 1905, an institution which had been organized previous to that year 
under the name of the E. Milhon Bank. It had been organized in 1898 by Mr. 
Milhon and continued as a private bank until 1905, when it w^as reorganized 
as the Farmers Bank of Hazehvood. The new bank occupies part of the new 
building w'hich was erected by Mr. Milhon and has commodious quarters 
\\here it transacts a rapidly-increasing business. In addition to his mercan- 
tile and financial interests, Mr. Milhon has also been the postmaster of Hazel- 
wood for the past twenty years and still occupies that responsible position. 
Mr. Milhon enjoys an immense trade from Hazehvood and the surrounding 
communitv. The farmers from as far as ten miles come to Hazehvood to 
do tiieir trading. He is a clever advertiser and appreciates the value of 
scientific advertising. In fact, such is the excellence of his work along this 
line that he has received numerous comments from dry goods magazines 
throughout the country on the excellence of his advertising. 

Mr. Milhon was married July 4, 1893, to Ida Hazlewood, daughter of 
Benjamin P. and Eunice A. (Thomas) Hazlewood, and to this marriage there 
ha\-e been Ijorn two children. Sylvan, who died in infancy, and Emery J. 
Fraternally, Mr. Milhon is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons at 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 719 

Monrovia, Indiana, the Knights of Pythias at Mooresville. the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows at Monrovia and the Improved Order of Red Men at 
Hazelwood. Mrs. Milhon is a loyal and faithful member of the Missionary 
Baptist church, and also belongs to Order of the Eastern Star and the Daugh- 
ters of Pocahontas. Their son Emery is afHliated with the Red Men. 
Politically, Mr. Milhon has always espoused the cause of the Democratic 
party, but the business cares which have demanded all of his attention have 
prevented him from taking any active part in politics. Enough has been said 
of the life history of Mr. Milhon to show that he has been a man of keen 
business judgment, combined with that tact and personality which render him 
a successful man of the world. Nevertheless, in spite of the fact that he has 
been busy with his many interests, he has not neglected to take an active part 
in the life of the community about him, but has contributed his share to all 
worthy enterprises in his locality. He has been in the milling business for 
the past twenty years at Hazlewood, his trade extending twenty miles out. 



WILLIAM H. STEVENSON. 

It is both pleasant and profitable to study the life record of such a 
worthy gentleman as he whose name forms the caption of this review, for 
in it we find evidence of traits of character that can not help making for 
success in the life of one who directs his efforts, as Mr. Stevenson has done, 
along proper paths with persistency and untiring zeal, toward worthy ends. 
Having had as his close companion through life, upright principles, these 
worthy traits of character have resulted, as we shall see, in blessing to him- 
self, his family and those with whom he has come into contact. 

William H. Stevenson, the son of Morgan and Rhoda E. (West) Ste- 
venson, was born February 2, 1862, in Marion township, about four miles 
west of Danville. Morgan Stevenson was a native of Kentucky and came 
with his parents, Payton and Sarah Stevenson, to this county when a small 
boy. He became a farmer and continued to follow that occupation until 
his death, February 14, 1888. His wife died October 24, 1896. Mr. and 
Mrs. Morgan Stevenson were the parents of ten children : Mrs. Sarah E. 
Thompson; Harriet, deceased; Mrs. Lottie Tinder; Evaline, deceased; Will- 
iam H., whose biography is herein delineated; Mary Etta, deceased; Flora 
(Mrs. Hiram Gooch) is deceased; Edgar, Isaac and Charles. 

After receiving a good common school education, William H. Steven- 



720 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

son remained on the home farm until his marriage and for the first eight 
years after his marriage he hved on a rented farm. He was thrifty and, 
with the assistance of his wife, was able to lay aside some money each year. 
In 1895 ^hey purchased sixty-seven acres from the old Stevenson home- 
stead, but four years later sold this and bought the one hundred and fifty- 
four acres in Union township, three miles south of Lizton, where they now 
live. While following general farming he has always raised some stock 
each year and from the, sale of this he has added not a little to his annual 
income. He has improved his farm in many ways, until it now presents a 
very attractive appearance. 

Mr. Stevenson was married December 11, 1887, to Mary C. Flynn, 
the daughter of John D. and Virginia W. (Harris) Flynn. John D. Flynn 
was a native of this county, his father having come to this county from 
Kentucky. He died January 24, 1888. His wife also was a native of this 
state, and died April 12, 1899. Mr. and Mrs. Flynn were the parents of 
four children: James, deceased; Mary C, the wife of Mr. Stevenson; 
Nicodemus, deceased, and Mrs. Virginia Ann Christey. Mr. and Mrs. 
Stevenson have one son living, Ray. He married Beulah Harbison, and 
has one son, Loyd. 

Mr. Stevenson has been a life-long Democrat and, while he is inter- 
ested in the local candidates of his party, he has never taken an active in- 
terest in the general campaigns of his party. He and the members of his 
family are adherents of the Missionary Baptist church and contribute gen- 
erously of their means to its support. Mr. Stevenson is a very pleasant man 
to meet and he is in every sense of the word one of the sterling representa- 
tives of the twentieth-century man of affairs of Hendricks county. 



HARRY E. SANDERS. 



It is always pleasant and profitable to contemplate the career of a man 
who has won a definite goal in life, whose career has been such as to com- 
mend him to the honor and respect of his fellow citizens. Such, in brief, is 
the record of the well-known agriculturist whose name appears at the head 
of this brief review, than whom a more whole-souled or popular man it would 
be difficult to find within the limits of Hendricks countv, where he has long 
maintained his home and where he has labored not only for his own indi- 
vidual interests and that of his immediate family, but also for the improve- 




HARRY E. SANDERS 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 721 

ment and welfare of the entire community, whose interests he has ever had 
at heart. 

Harry E. Sanders, the son of Henry and Juha A. (Gossett) Sanders, 
was born in Plainfield.- Indiana, October lo, 1870. His father was a native 
of Fayette county. Ohio, his birth occurring there in July, 1826, while his 
mother was born in North Carolina in January, 1828. Henry Sanders came 
to Indiana in 1836 with his parents, settling in Washington township, this 
county, and here Henry Sanders was reared, grew to manhood and, in Oc- 
tober, 1847, was married to Julia A. Gossett, and to this union were born 
seven children : Alva W., of Galveston, Texas, who is connected with the 
shipping industry of that city; Mrs. Mary A. Zeller, who was born in 1850, 
was twice married, both of her husbands being now deceased, and she has 
three children living; Mrs. Emma E. McGrew, whose husband is deceased, 
has one child and is a resident of Indianapolis; Albert P., deceased, and who 
was married to Emma Inskip, had one child; William E., of Chicago, who is 
a real estate dealer, married Ida Coffee; Dr. Frank E., who is a practicing 
physician of Culver, Indiana, is married and has one son. Henry Sanders 
died in 1896. and was survived by his widow several years, her death occur- 
ring in 1905. 

Harry E. Sanders, whose history is here briefly reviewed, was reared 
on the farm in Washington township, and attended the public school of his 
home neighborhood, receiving a good, practical education, and early in life 
decided that he wanted to follow the agricultural profession, and with this 
end in view applied himself to the acquisition of all the information which 
would assist him in making a success of this calling. 

Mr. Sanders w^as married October 17, 1905. to Emma L. Saunders, 
whose father was a merchant of Zanesville, Ohio. Mrs. Sanders is a woman 
of refinement and culture and adds grace and charm to their elegant home. 
Mr. Sanders has, in addition to his regular farming duties, taken an active 
interest in civic affairs and as a member of the county board of commission- 
ers has been one of the prominent factors in the building of the new two- 
hundred-and-seventy-five-thousand-dollar court house at Danville. This 
building embodies all of the latest and most modern ideas in court house ar- 
chitecture, and when completed will be one of the finest of its kind in Indiana. 
He has also been on the advisory board of his township, and in both capaci- 
ties he has shown a capability and adaptability for public work which renders 
him an efiicient servant of his fellow citizens. Fraternally, he is a member of 
(46) 



y22 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

the Free and Accepted Masons, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and 
the Knights of Pythias. 

Mr. Sanders is now in the prime of life and usefulness and has many- 
years of active service before him and the work which he has done in the 
past speaks well for the future. His native ability, business success, high 
character and sterling integrity have won for him the esteem and confidence 
of all who know him. 



WILSON D. BARNES. 



It is with pleasure the biographer presents the following sketch, that of 
a plain honest man of affairs, who by correct methods and a strict regard for 
the interests of his patrons has made his influence felt in Hazel wood and won 
for himself distinctive prestige in the business circles of that community. Of 
sterling German ancestry, Mr. Barnes is a man whose integrity and strength 
of character commands the respect of his contemporaries and who leaves the 
impress of his individuality upon the community honored by his residence. 

Wilson D. Barnes was born in 1852 near Stilesville, Hendricks county, 
Indiana, the son of Stephen A. Barnes and Lydia Ann Long, his wife. 
Stephen A. was born in Pennsylvania in 1805, a son of William Barnes, who 
with his wife emigrated to America about the year 1800. He located in 
Pennsylvania and there passed the remainder of his life, his death occurring 
while his son Stephen A. was still a youth. Later on, Stephen A. Barnes and 
his mother came westward into Indiana and located in Miami county. They 
remained there a short time, when both came into Hendricks county, where ne 
secured a tract of government land about one mile south of Stilesville and 
there he lived the balance of his life, farming the tract of land he had secured 
in a wikl state, but which he had with much labor converted into a well- 
cultivated farm. In the early days he was a bricklayer and helped build the 
first brick flues which were erected in the then growing town of Indian- 
apolis. The first chimneys had Ijeen simply primitive affairs of mud and 
sticks. Lydia Ann (Long) Barnes, mother of the immediate subject of this 
sketch, was born in Ohio probably about 1810 and came to IncHana with her 
parents while she was still a girl, the family locating near Stilesville. Her 
death occurred when the subject of this sketch was but seven years old. in 
August, 1859. Stephen A., the subject's father, lived for many years there- 
after, his deatJi occurring August 2j, 1883. After the death of his first wife, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 723 

Stephen A. Barnes married the second time, his bride being Mary Ann Davis, 
whose death occurred several years after he passed awav. 

AA'ilson D. Barnes grew up on the homestead near Stdesvillc. and re- 
mained with his father until eighteen years old, when for a few years he 
worked out as a farm hand. On January ii, 1877, he was united in marriage 
with Elizabeth D. Richardson, who was born near Hazelwood, this county, a 
daughter of William B. and Mary (Hurd) Richardson, the former of wdiom 
was a native of North Carolina and a son of Daniel and Dorcas Hurd. When 
William B. was a young man, he came to Indiana with his parents. They 
made the long journey in a wagon, William B. walking al^out half the dis- 
tance. They settled near Hazelwood at an early date. Mary Hurd, mother 
of Mrs. Barnes, was born in Kentucky, a daughter of Joshua Hurd, who came 
to Indiana, settling in Montgomery county, when she was but a smail child. 
\Villiam B. Richardson and wife passed the remainder of their lives on the 
farm near Ha/elwf'Od. where he carried on general farming anH in addition 
did considerable trading" and selling of live stock. He was one of the 
intiuential men of the community and a good citizen in every respect, having 
served three years in the Union cause during the dark days of the sixties. 
He was a man highly esteemed and respected and because of the unbounded 
confidence which friends and neighbors reposed in him, he was often ap- 
pointed guardian for minors and acted as administrator in settling up the 
business of many an estate. 

For two vears after his marriage, suljject carried on faruiing near llazel- 
wood, and then, in the spring of 1880. he engaged in the mercantile business 
at Hazelwood. In this business he continued for about ten years, when he 
disposed of his interest and purchased a farm south of Hazelwood. This 
farm contains seventy-five acres, which he still owns. After about nine years 
spent on the farm, he again engaged in business in Hazelwood and since that 
time, witli the exception of two years, he has been so engaged. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Barnes have been born five children, two of whom have 
passed awa\'. These are Arthur D., who died when about twenty months 
old, and Lillie D.. who lived to be eighteen years old, her death occurring in 
1904. Those living are Minnie, who is the wife of R. D. Stone, the proprietor 
of the telephone system at Clayton. Myrtle E. remains at home and Conrad 
W., who was born in 1887, married Emma Turner, of Indianapolis, and is in 
partnership with his father in the store at Hazelwood. Both Mr. and Mrs. 
Barnes are members of the Missionary Baptist church, lieing devoted and con- 
sistent men.bers of the same. For most of the last twenty years Mr. Barnes 



724 IIE.MJRICKS COUNTY, IXDIANA. 

has served the society as church treasurer. The success attained hv Air. 
Barnes in In's hnsiness affairs has heen greatlv owing to his steady persistence, 
stern integrity jind excellent judgment, ((ualities which have also won for him 
the confidence and esteem of the puhlic to a marked degree. Personally, he is 
a man of r;uiet and unassuming disposition though genial and friendly in his 
relations \\'ith others, and he has for man}- years enjoyed a wide acquaintaiice 
and large prestige throughout Hendricks county. 



CHARLES E. SHIELDS. 

Hendricks county, Indiana, is known as one of the best counties of the 
state and. as the reputation of a locality is but a reflection of the quality of 
its citizenship, it goes without saying that this county numbers among its 
citizens many men who in one way or another have given of their time or 
ability to further such enterprises as make for the advancement of any com- 
munity in its moral, educational or material life. Such a citizen is Charles 
E. Shields, who by reason of unusual ability and enterprise has taken his 
place among the foremost citizens of the county, and while primarily con- 
sidering the interest,', of himself and those dearest to him, has at the same 
time accomplished much for the public good. 

Charles E. Shields, present trustee of Liberty township, Hendricks 
county, was born on July 28, 1872, near Lake Valley, Morgan county, this 
state, the son of David and Frances (Pruitt) Shields, both of whom also 
were born in the same county. David shields was a son of David Shields, 
Sr., who was born and raised in North Carolina, coming to this state some 
time after hi.- marriage, bringing with them two or three children. They 
accomplished the journey from their native state in the early days, coming 
overland in a wagon, passing through the state of Kentucky. They located 
in Morgan county, where they passed the remainder of their lives on the 
farm which they had secured. 

David Shields, Jr., grew up in Morgan county, receiving what educa- 
tion the early schools of the day afforded and employing his time in agri- 
cultural labors. He was a veteran of the Civil War and died in 1881, when 
the subject of this sketch was but nine years old, his wife having died three 
years previous. After the death of his father, the subject was taken into 
the home of his uncle, Harrison Shields, near Eminence, Morgan county, 
and there remained until he was fifteen years of age. At that time he came 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 725 

to friends in Liberty township, this county, and attended Central Normal 
College at Danville, while also engaged in farm work. However, this was 
not the chosen vocation of his life, and about 1898 he formed a partner- 
ship with E. V. Milhon and together they engaged in the mercantile busi- 
ness at Hazlewood, which partnership remained in force about three and 
one-half years. Prior to the dissolution of that partnership, these two gen- 
tlemen had organized and constructed what is known as the Hazelwood 
Telephone System, and in 1902 Mr. Shields disposed of his interest m tne 
mercantile business to Mr. Milhon and purchased Mr. Milhon's interest in 
the telephone company. Also, in connection with their mercantile business, 
the two partners had operated a private bank, and at their dissolution Mr. 
Shields" interests in this went to 'Mr. ^Million, the sul)iect desiring to devote 
his entire time to the operation of the telephone business. This business 
he retained until January i. 1912. by which time it had assumed consider- 
able proportion:- and had proven of untold value to the community. 

Mr. Shields has always been a strong adherent of the Republican party 
and always took an active interest in local affairs pertaining to same. In 
1908 he was elected township trustee and by reason of the legislative change 
made in the length of term of office of township trustees, he holds his seat 
until January i, 191 5. Mr. Shields' fraternal afifiliations are with the Inde- 
pendent Order of Odd Fellows, the Knights of Pythias and the Improved 
Order of Red Men. and in the workings of these orders he takes a com- 
metidable interest. 

On July 9, 1899, Mr. Shields was united in marriage with Sylvia Burch, 
who was born near Bloomington, Monroe county, this state, a daughter of 
William II. and Susie (Sparks) Burch, both of whom were born and reared 
in the same county and were throughout their lives very active in promot- 
ing the interests of the Baptist church. Mr. Burch's vocation was that of 
farming, as was also that of his father, Charles Burch, who with his wife. 
Jane, came from their native state of North Carolina and settled in Mon- 
roe county in the early thirties and there he passed the remainder of his 
life, his death occurring December 23, 1905. His widow still resides in 
Bloomington, at an advanced age. Susie Sparks Burch, mother of Mrs. 
Shields, was a daughter of William and Nancy Sparks, who also came from 
North Carolina, making the long journey overland in a wagon. They ar- 
rived in Monroe county about 1835. where they spent their remaining days. 
Mrs. Shields received her elementary education in the district schools of 
Monroe county, later attending high school in Bloomington and the Central 



726 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Normal College at Danville, from which latter institution she obtained her 
certificate qualifying her to teach school and for six years she followed 
this profession, teaching four years in Monroe county and two in Hendricks 
county. To Mr. and Mrs. Shields have been born three children, the eldest 
being Joy June, who was born in June, 1900, and died in December, 1906. 
The two remaining are Myrth and Jewel. 

Both Mr. and Mrs. Shields are active members of the Church of Christ 
and have been largely instrumental in bringing about the excellent condi- 
tions existing in the local body at Hazelwood. Mr. Shields and two other 
members purchased and donated the site for the new church building, which 
was completed and dedicated to its high calling on October 30, 19 10. The 
church society was organized in March, 1909. and since the time of its or- 
ganization Mr. Shields has served as trustee and elder, being active in bring- 
ing about the speedy erection of the church edifice, which is a handsome 
structure, costing between nine and ten thousand dollars. Prior to the com- 
pletion of this structure, the society held its meetings in Red Men's hall. 
Mrs. Shields is not behind her husband in good works, for since the or- 
ganization of the Ladies' Aid Society, in connection with the church, she 
has been very active in the work falling within its scope, and was the first 
president of the local organization, which has the reputation of l)eing one 
of the most proficient and finely organized societies in the state. She is 
deeply interested in the National Mother Congress. Mr. and Mrs. Shields 
are among the very best people of the community, both being full of inter- 
est in the lives of others and sincerely desirous of accomplishing all the 
good possible for their community. In view of Mr. Shields' public activi- 
ties, it is especially fitting that a biographical sketch of his career be incorpo- 
rated in a work of the scope intended in the present volume. 



FRANCIS M. HARRISON. 

It was once remarked by a celebrated moralist and biographer that "there 
has scarcely pas.^ed a life of which a judicious and faithful narrali\e ^voLlld 
not have been useful." Believing in the truth of this opinion, expressed by 
one of the greatest and best of men, the writer of this review takes pleasure 
in presenting" a few facts in the career of a gentleman who, by industr}-, perse- 
verance, temperance and integrity, has worked himself from an luimble elation 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 727 

to a successful place in life and won an honorable position among the well 
known and highly esteemed men of the locality in which he resides. 

Francis Marion Harrison, the son of Benjamin and Rachael (Hendricks) 
Harrison, was born in Eel River township. Hendricks county, March ii, 1873. 
Benjamin Harrison was a native of Boone county and reared to manhood and 
ma-ried in that county. His father was a cooper at Lafayette and followed 
that trade until his death. Benjamin Harrison came to Hendricks county 
about 1870 and operated a saw-mill northeast of North Salem for a number 
of years. He sold his mill and then ran one in Boone county for a number 
of years. He then returned to Hendricks county. Union tow^nship, and oper- 
ated a saw-mill at Montclair until his death at that place in 1881. The wife 
of Benjamin Harrison was also a native of Boone county and is still li\ing 
at Brownsburg. After the death of her husband in 1881, she married Joshua 
Tharp, a farmer and banker at Brownsburg. Benjamin Harrison and wife 
were the parents li eight children: George, deceased; Frank, deceased; John, 
deceased ; Ora ; William ; Oliver, deceased ; Francis Clarion and Edgar. 

Francis M. Harrison was reared to manhood in Hendricks county and 
has lived north of Danville since he was fifteen years of age. He began oper- 
ating his present farm in 1910, having formerly operated a farm of eighty- 
three acres in Marion township for ten years. He sold his Marion township 
farm and bought his present farm of ninety acres in Center township. He 
carries on general farming and also raises considerable live stock for the 
market. He is a man wnth excellent ideas concerning agriculture and takes 
an interest in farming institutes and all other organizations that are of benefit 
to the farmer. 

Mr. Harrison was married in August, 1895, to Hattie Alay Thomas, 
the daughter of Lewns and Louisa (Talbott) Thomas. Lewis Thomas was 
a natiAe of Fayette county, Indiana, and came with his parents to this county 
when he was ten years of age. His father, Erasmus Thomas, was born in 
Fayette county November 13, 1821, and moved to Hendricks county in 1864. 
Erasmus Thomas w^as the first auditor of Tipton county, Indiana, and helped 
to lay out the present town of Tipton. He held the office of auditor for one 
year, then refused to hold it any longer because of the meager salary which 
was attached to the office. He ne^'er held any offices in Hendricks county, 
but fanned and served as a regular Baptist preacher for over forty years, 
preaching in the Danville church for a long time. He died in 1897 on the 
homestead farm. His son, Lewis, the father of Airs. Harrison, was reared 
to manhood in this county and qualified for the Regular Baptist ministry. He 



728 PIENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

is still active as a Baptist minister at Ashley. Ohio, where he has been for the 
past thirty years. Mrs. Lewis Thomas is a native of Center township, this 
county, and died February 7, 1877, on the old homestead farm, four and one- 
half miles north of Danville. Mr. and Airs. Harrison are the parents of four 
children, all of whom are still under the parental roof. Benjamin, Mildred, 
Aria and Alary. 

Mr. Harrison is a member of the Republican party, but has ne\er taken 
an}- further part in politics than to cast his A'ote for his candidate at the regular 
election. However, he takes a deep interest in the main questions of the day 
and keeps himself well informed as to the progress of events of the nation 
by reading the newspapers and magazines. He is a member of the Knights 
of Pythias at Danville. He and his wafe are faithful members of the Regular 
Baptist church. Mr. Harrison is a man who has always been interested in the 
various public-spirited enterprises of his community and only lends his assist- 
ance to such as he deemed worthy. He is congenial by nature and has a 
personalitv which attracts friends, whom he easily retains because of his fine 
qualities of character. 



WILLIAM W. QUINN. 

William W. Ouinn, of Cartersburg, Hendricks . county, now Hving in 
comfortable retirement after many years of unceasing activity in connec- 
tion with agricultural pursuits, is one of the best knowai citizens of the 
county. His well directed efforts in the practical affairs of life, his capable 
management of his business interests and his sound judgment have brought 
to him prosperity and his life demonstrates what may be accomplished by 
any man of energy and ambition who is not afraid to work and has the per- 
severance to continue his labors in the face of any disaster or discourage- 
ment that may arise. In all the relations of life Mr. Ouinn has commanded 
the confidence and respect of those with whom he has been brought mto 
contact and a biographical history of this locality would not be complete 
wdthout a record of his career. 

William W. Ouinn was born on April i, 1837, in Union county, In- 
diana, the son of John and Sarah (Bright) Quinn, both of whom were born 
and reared in Fleming county, Kentucky. They were married there prior 
to coming to this state about 1820. They located in Union county imme- 
diately upon coming to Indiana, and there passed the remainder of their 
lives. John Ouinn was a life-long farmer and when he first took up his 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 729 

residence in Union county it was then not much more than a wilderness. 
One man filled all the county offices. John Quinn's death occurred when 
the subject of this sketch was a lad of but fourteen years. He left a family 
of thirteen children, the youngest being the subject, who is now the only 
surviving member of the family. 

The subject passed his boyhood on the home farm in Union county, 
obtaining such education as the early subscription schools of the time af- 
forded and receiving early instruction in the secrets of successful farming 
from his father, who was quite skilled in his chosen vocation. Mr. Quinn 
has been twice married. On March 8, 1877, Mr. Quinn for the second time 
stood before the alter of Hymen, his bride being Nancy L. Clevenger, of 
Wayne county, this state, a daughter of Samuel and Ruth (Sparh) Clev- 
enger, the former a well-known farmer of Abbington township, Wayne 
county, where he resided for many years. Immediately after marriage, Mr. 
and Mrs. Quinn established their home in Jackson township, Decatur county, 
this state, where he engaged in farming for ten years. Then in 1887 they 
came to this county, arriving at Cartersburg on March 3d of that year. In 
this county Mr. Quinn purchased a fine farm of two hundred and sixteen 
acres a short distance northwest of Cartersburg and there he resided until 
March 12, 1902, when he moved into Cartersburg, and on December 2, 1902, 
he moved into his present home, which he had erected. Mr. Quinn also 
owns two hundred and ten acres- of farm lands in Marion county, this state ; 
in all, his holdings now amount to considerably over four hundred acres. 
In addition to general farming, Mr. Quinn pays particular attention to the 
raising and selling of live stock, and in this branch of his business espe- 
cially he has made an unqualified success. All this has been brought about 
through his untiring energy and ambition, coupled with unusual executive 
abilitv and the fact that he has ever sought to keep abreast of the times in 
his chosen work. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Quinn was born one son, Harlan Everett, who first 
saw the light of day on September 29, 1888. He married Maude Holder- 
man and is the father of two sons, William Lee and James Harry. Everett 
now has charge of affairs on the farm which the subject left upon taking 
up his residence in Cartersburg. 

Mr. Quinn's fraternal affiliation is with the Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows, being a member of the local lodge at Danville. Politically, he is 
independent. Mrs. Quinn is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. 
Mr. Quinn is a man of positive temperament, strong in his convictions, and 



7^^0 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

when once having thought out a course of action, he is determined in its 
execution. With these stronger characteristics, he is genial and friendly 
and is highly esteemed by friends and neighbors who know him for his 
sterling worth and unvarying uprightness of character. 



ALBERT JOHNSON. 



Hendricks county, Indiana, enjoys an enviable reputation because of 
the high order of her citizenship and none of her citizens occupy a more 
favorable position in the estimation of his fellows than the gentleman whose 
name appears at the head of this sketch. The son of an unusually strong 
and progressive man. to whom the early development of this county is 
highly indebted, Albert Johnson is himself numbered among the leading 
citizens of his native county. His continued residence here has but strength- 
ened his hold on the hearts of the people with whom he has been associated 
and no one today enjoys a larger circle of friends and acquaintances, who 
esteem him because of his sterling qualities of character and his business 
ability. He is. therefore, eminently entitled to representation in a work of 
this character. 

Albert Johnson was born on September 19. 1843, about one and one- 
half miles northwest of Bridgeport and near the eastern line of Hendricks 
county, being the son of Jeremiah and Susanna (Johnson) Johnson. Jere- 
miah Johnson was a son of Aholiab and Hannah Johnson, and was born at 
Killingly, Windham county, Connecticut, on August 23. 1792. and when 
three or four years old removed with his parents to Stafford, in Tolland 
county, Connecticut. With the exception of about three years passed at the 
home of his mother's father, Jeremiah Bacon, at Middletown, Connecticut, 
he continued to live with his father and work at farming and getting such 
education as the opportunities of that day afforded him. He taught several 
schools in the winter time before he was twenty-one years of age. In 181 3, 
during the war with Great Britain, he served as a volunteer in the state mi- 
litia of Connecticut for about seventy days, being placed on duty to guard 
the fort at New London and vicinity, for which service he, long afterwards, 
obtained a bounty of land from the government. After the close of his 
military service, he went as far south as Washington, D. C, seeking his 
fortune, and for a short time was employed in the reconstruction of the 
capitol building, it having been burned by the British. However, he soon 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 73 1 

lired of this class of labor and, believing there was in store for him an easier 
way of gaining a livelihood, he journeyed to Baltimore, where he shipped 
on a private armed sloop bound for a cruise. He took an immediate dislike 
to that sort of life and was discharged at one of the West Indian islands 
called A'irgin Gorda, from whence he returned to his father's home in Staf- 
ford. There for one term he taught the district school, numbering not less 
than one hundred pupils, and early in the spring of 1815 he started with a 
small trunk, containing a few articles of wearing apparel and about fifty 
dollars in money, leaving the balance of his savings placed on interest. He 
was bound for the great new West and travelled by stage to Philadelphia. 
There he placed his trunk on one of the large wagons constantly passing be- 
tween Philadelphia and Pittsburgh and betook himself on foot to the latter 
place. There he fell in company with another Eastern man of like ambition 
as himself, and the two constructed a flat boat w^hich they loaded with coal 
and floated down the Ohio river to Cincinnati, where boat and cargo were 
both sold for whatever they would bring. From Cincinnati he soon went to 
a German village about twenty miles northwest of that city and there he 
was soon engaged in teaching the Germans the English language and such 
other rudiments of education as circumstances permitted. There he con- 
tinued until such time as the authorities of the new state of Indiana fixed 
the place for the site of the new state capitol, the present Indianapolis. He 
soon learned of the fact and, seeing for himself an opportunity in connection 
with that circumstance, he hired a couple of men, each having a four-horse 
team, and loaded them with provisions and such other articles as were nec- 
essary in a new settlement. Leaving his German friends, he started through 
the then unbroken forest for the future city, fording streams and cutting 
the way through the woods, guided only by a small compass. After much 
time and endeavor and enduring many hardships, he at length reached the 
place of his destination. Here he detained the two teamsters until they, 
together with such assistance as those already there could afford, had built 
for him a log cabin, being the third house in the new capitol of Indiana. 
His first dining table was the head of a flour barrel, his first plate a clean 
maple chip and his first bedstead was framed into the corner of his cabin. 
He at once opened up and began disposing of his stock of provisions, pow- 
der, lead, etc., and became one of the earliest promoters of the place. When 
the first brick court house was built (which was also used as a state house 
for several years) he took the contract for the brick work and, in company 
with John Johnson (one of whose daughters afterward became his wife), 



732 HEXDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

made the brick and completed the contract to the satisfaction of the au- 
thorities. At that time mone}' was a very scarce article and the state obliga- 
tions with which he was paid for his work were heavily discounted and had 
it not been for the money which was due him in Cincinnati, which was col- 
lected by friends and sent him as fast as possible, he would probably have 
become bankrupt. However, he remained in the growing village of Indi- 
anapolis for a number of years, doing all within his power to foster its dig- 
nity and growth. He was generally reasonably successful in business, though 
sometimes he suffered heavy losses as once when bringing a boat load 
of salt up the Wabash river, the boat suddenly sank and boat, cargo and 
wearing apparel of himself and associates was lost. They were thankful 
to escape with their lives and had to beg and walk their w^ay home, a dis- 
tance of over one hundred miles. He invested his savings in land at govern- 
ment prices, which of course advanced in value as the county became set- 
tled. When the National road was built west from Indianapolis, he laid 
out the village of Bridgeport on land which he owaied, and built a hotel, 
steam mill and a store. When the plank road was built he took an active 
interest in it and gave right of way through all his land. He later gave 
ground for a depot at Bridgeport and did much otherwise to encourage 
the building of the railroad. He was active and energetic in business and 
did much to promote the cause of education and scientific agriculture in 
the state. On his own farm he kept abreast of his times and did much to 
improve the breed of cattle throughout his community by importing im- 
proved breeds from other states. 

Jeremiah Johnson came from pure English ancestry and, according to 
family tradition, some of them left England and settled in Massachusetts 
on the restoration of Charles II, finding it expedient to do this on account of 
their participation in the Civil War as soldiers and partisans of Cromwell. 
Jeremiah Johnson reared a family of nine children, seven sons and two 
daughters. He survived his wife and both daughters several years and de- 
parted this life at Clayton, this county, on March 20, 1876, having passed 
a life of unusual activity and usefulness. His influence over the moral life 
alone of this section of the state can not be estimated and his generous con- 
tributions to the material advancement of the community certainly can be 
surpassed by none. Such men as he are the heart and bone and sinew of a 
new community. 

When Albert Johnson was a boy he lived on the home farm and at 
Bridgeport for a short time. About 1850 the family moved about three 



IIKXIMUCKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 733 

miles east of Bridgeport, near where Ben Davis now is, and resided there 
until 1855 and then moved to Liberty township, this county, when the im- 
mediate subject of this sketch was about twelve years old. Here he grew 
to manhood on his father's farm, attending the early schools of the district 
and later attending the academy at Danville in the wnnter of 1859- 1860. 
He returned home after one year spent in Danville, in a very poor state of 
health and for four years was almost an invalid. In 1876 he left the farm 
and removed to Clavton, but continued to operate the farm until in 1880, 
when he engaged in the mercantile business at Clayton in partnership with his 
l^rother and Edwin Johnson, L. D. Johnson also being a partner, under the 
firm name of Johnson Brothers & Company. In connection with that busi- 
ness, he and his brother did a little private banking business. In 1886 the 
brother died, but the mercantile business was continued under the same 
name, tlie banking business, however, having the name changed from fohn- 
son Brothers to Albert Johnson & Company, the widow having retained her 
interest in the firm and the business being conducted along the lines of a 
private bank. In 1896 the mercantile business was disposed of and the 
banking business continued as before. In 1905 the banking business was 
reorganized under the private banking law, retaining the same firm name. 
On January 2S<, 1907. Lorenzo D. Johnson, former partner with Johnson 
Brothers in the mercantile business, became a member of the banking firm 
in company with the sul^ject, his daughter and brother's widow, the bank 
at that time being capitalized at twenty thousand dollars. They continued 
under the old firm name until May i, 1912, when they reorganized under the 
state banking law and converted the institution into a state bank with a 
capital stock of twenty-five thousand dollars, fully paid up, and with a 
surplus of twelve hundred and fifty dollars. They were officered as follows : 
Albert Johnson, president; J. C. Walker, vice-president, and L. D. Johnson, 
cashier, with those three also acting as directors. The present directors are 
Eugene Edmundson, ]\Iilton A. W'^est, L. D. Johnson and Albert John.'on. 
\lv. Walker has recently died. 

On October 20, 1867, Mr. Johnson was united in marriage with jNIary 
E. Snoddy, daughter of George W. and Nancy (Fitzgerald) Snoddy. of 
Morgan county, this state. Mr. Snocjdy was a farmer and stock rais&r and 
was also a minister ordained in the Christian church. To Mr. and Mrs. 
Johnson have been born four children. One daughter, Annie, died when 
ten years old. Their daughter Gertrude is the wife of O. W. Greene and 
lives in Kansas Citv, Missouri. She is the mother of two children, IMarian 



734 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

and Eniil}'. Emma C. is tlie wife of B. \[. Davis and resides at Oxford, 
Ohio, jNIr. Davis l)eing a professor in Miami University. Arthur A. is a 
ci\'il engineer located in Indianapolis. His wife was May Brayton, daugh- 
ter of Dr. A. W. Brayton, of Indianapolis. 

In 1890 Mr. Johnson moved to Indianapolis, taking up his residence in 
Irvington. so as to be near Butler College, where he wished to educate his 
children. He, however, retains his interests in Clayton and considers this 
his permanent home. Mr. Johnson is a man of sound and practical intelli- 
gence, keenly alert to everything relating to his interests, and, in fact, with 
all that concerns the advancement and prosperity of his community. Be- 
cause of his splendid personal characteristics and his genuine worth, he en- 
joys the confidence and esteem of all who know him and he has an unusu- 
ally wide and varied acquaintance. 



LORENZO D. JOHNSON. 

In past ages the history of a country was comprised chiefly in the rec- 
ord of its wars and concjuests. Today history is largely a record of com- 
mercial activity, and those who are foremost in the annals of the nation are 
those who have become leaders in business circles. The conquests now 
made are those of mind over matter, and the victor is he who can most 
successfully establish, control and operate business interests. Mr. John- 
son is unquestionably one of the strongest and most influential of the men 
whose lives have been an essential part of the history of Hendricks county. 
Tireless energy, keen perception, honesty of purpose, genius for devising 
and executing the right thing in the right place and time are the chief char- 
acteristics of the man. These, combined with everyday common sense and 
guided by strong w'ill power, are concomitants which will insure success in 
any undertaking. 

Lorenzo D. Johnson, cashier of the State Bank of Clayton, is a Hoosier 
by birth, having first seen the light of day in Morgan county on May 14, 
1 85 1, the son of Hezekiah K. and Eliza (Greene) Johnson. Hezekiah K. 
Johnson was born in North Carolina in 1809 and married Miss Greene there 
before he came to Indiana, where they located in Morgan county. In 1865 
he removed to Clayton and at that time he gave up the vocation of farm- 
ing, which he had followed all his life, and engaged in the general mer- 
chandise business. He opened up his business in 1868 on the spot where the 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 735 

traction station now stands. He continued in this business until his death, 
in 1870. His widow followed him into the great beyond one year later. 
In addition to his business as an agriculturist and merchant, he was also a 
minister of the Gospel and an earnest and sincere man in all the relations 
of Hfe. 

Lorenzo D. Johnson received a good schooling in his youth and after 
completing his studies he went into his father's store and at the time of his 
father's death took charge of it and operated it until 1873. At that time 
he disposed of it to Howland & Spotts, of Danville, but continued with them 
until they sold it to Mr. Field, of the old publishing firm of Merrill, Field 
& Company of Indianapolis. After Mr. Field purchased the store, Mr. 
Johnson continued in his employ with full charge of the store and did not 
see the new proprietor until six weeks after the purchase was made, the 
former owners having simply turned keys, books, etc., over to Mr. John- 
son. After leaving Mr. Field, Mr. Johnson took a position with Clark & 
Harris and was with them until 1880, when he became a partner with 
Albert and Edwin Johnson in their mercantile business, under the firm name 
of Johnson Brothers & Company. He was with them until 1896, and was 
then employed in the private bank of Albert Johnson & Company and in the 
year 1907 became a partner in that bank with the position of cashier. In 
this capacity he continued with the bank through its reorganization into the 
State Bank of Clayton in 19 12 under the state banking laws. He was elected 
cashier of the new organization and continues in that capacity at the pres- 
ent time. 

On June 18, 1873, Mr. Johnson was united in marriage with Frances 
V. Garrison, daughter of John and Sarah (Nichols) Garrison, the former 
being the son of Josiah Garrison, an early settler here who came from New 
Jersey. John Garrison was engaged in farming here throughout his life. 
To Mr. and Mrs. Johnson have been born two children, Mary and Dee. 
Mary is the wife of J. Mark Black, of Indianapolis. She is the mother of 
three children, Dorothy, Frances and Robert L. Their daughter Dee is the 
wife of Dr. B. R. Quinn, of Indianapolis. She is the mother of two chil- 
dren, Maxine and Russell. 

Mr. and Mrs. Johnson are both members of the Methodist Episcopal 
church at Clayton and contribute liberally of time and means to further the 
cause of that society. They are considered among the very best people of 
the town and in their comfortable and commodious home there is ever 
found a cordial welcome for friend and stranger. Mr. Johnson is a man 



7^6 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

of (|uiet niannei. unassuming' in every particular and a man who wins and 
holds a large number of friends througii his innate kindliness and obliging 
manner. He is a busy man, but he finds time and opportunity to take in 
matters pertaining to the progress and growth of his community and county, 
keeping abreast of the times on all questions of vital interest and being re- 
garded as a leading citizen in the locality long honored by his residence. 



TAMES THOMAS LEAK. 

'^Ihe \aluable man to any community is the man who does things; and, 
with this criterion, it is safe to say that James T. Leak is one of the most im- 
portant men in Union township, this county. He is a splendid example of 
the progressive, self-made man who believes in doing well whatever is worth 
doing at all. He is a man of discernment and sound judgment, broad-minded 
and at the same time a follower of the principles embodied in the Golden Rule 
in all his relations with his fellow men. Daily contact with our fellow citi- 
zens so familiarizes us with their many virtues that w^e ordinarily overlook 
them, and commonly underestimate their possessor. Nevertheless, though 
the man may pass away, his deeds of virtue live on, and will, in time, do him 
the justice which he failed to receive during his life time. However, the 
many good qualities of Mr. Leak are fully recognized and appreciated by his 
fellow citizens, who long ago placed their stamp of approval upon his lite. 

James Thomas Leak, a prosperous farmer and banker of Lizton, this 
county, was born February 14, 1857, in Union township. His parents were 
George W. and Sarah G. (Leach) Leak. George W. Leak was born October 
ly. 1828, in Bracken county, Kentucky, and came with his parents, William 
and Eliza (Kitch) Leak, to this countv when he was about eight years of age. 
William Leak settled in Union township on a farm adjoining the present 
town of Lizton and farmed there until his death, September 11, 1845. George 
W. Leak grew to manhood in this county and was first married January 10, 
1850, to Sarah Leach, who died February 30, 1868. To this first marriage 
were born six children : Matilda Jane, deceased ; Mrs. Lucinda M. Hick- 
man ; James Thomas, whose career is portrayed in this connection ; Elizabeth 
Ann. deceased ; William E., deceased, and Enos Alonzo. After the death of 
his first wife, George W. Leak was married to Ann Burnett and to this sec- 
ond marriage were born five children: Mary E., deceased; Mrs. Hattie M. 
Dowdcn ; Mrs. Georgia Lillian McHenry ; Myrtle, deceased, and Bertha O. 




JAMBS T. LEAK 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 737 

James T. Leak received his education in the schools of Union township 
and remained at home until his marriage, at the age of twenty-one, when he 
went to farming for himself. He devoted his attention to this vocation until 
1902, when he retired from active -farming and moved to Lizton. As an 
agriculturist he carried on general farming, raised all the crops common to 
this locality and gave a considerable share of his attention to the breeding and 
raising of live stock. His farm is well improved, he has a comfortable and 
attractive residence, well arranged barns and other features which show him 
to be a man of wise discrimination and good judgment. In 1900 Mr. Leak 
became interested in banking and when the Citizens Bank at Jamestown was 
organized in that year he became a stockholder and director in the same and 
has been officially connected with that financial institution since its organiza- 
tion. In 1902 he moved to Lizton and became the cashier of the Lizton Bank 
upon its organization December i, 1910. and is still 'filling that responsible 
position to the entire satisfaction of the board of directors of the bank. 

Mr. Leak was married October 17, 1878, to Susan D. Young, the daugh- 
ter of Melton and Susan (Parrish) Young. Melton Young was born in Ken- 
tucky, his wife in South Carolina and they were married in Putnam county, 
Indiana. Upon their marriage they moved to Montgomery county, near 
Ladoga, and later to New Ross, in the same county. Some years before his 
death Mr. and Mrs. Young moved to Lebanon in. Boone county, where Mrs. 
Young died August 9, 1890, and Mr. Young June 20, 1896. Mr. and Mrs. 
Young were the parents of fifteen children: Mrs. Lucretia Dale, deceased; 
Thomas F. ; Reuben E., deceased; James D. ; Mrs. Mary Elizabeth Scott; 
Mrs. Rachel C. Bailey; Susan D., the wife of Mr. Leak; John; George; Mrs. 
Lucinda Apple, deceased; Ora E. ; Mrs. Emma Frame; Mrs. Estella Scott; 
Mrs. Ella Myer, and Mrs. Sarah Ann Harrison, deceased. 

Mr. and Mrs. Leak are the parents of two children, Sarah Essie, the 
wife of Ira O. Dale, a farmer of Middle township in this county. Mr. and 
Mrs. Dale have one daughter, Susan Fern. The other child of Mr. and Mrs. 
Leak is Milton Edward, a farmer in Union township, this county. He mar- 
ried Edna Wright and has two daughters, Mary Blanche and Susan Helen. 
Mr. Leak is a charter member of the Knights of Pythias at Lizton, having 
had his membership transferred from the Danville lodge to the lodge at 
Lizton upon its organization at the latter place. He has been a life-long Re- 
publican, but has never taken an active interest in politics. Mr. Leak is a 
plain-spoken man in his manner and yet with that honesty of speech and 

(47) 



7 



738 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

straightfonvardness which indicates the man of soHd worth; is quick to grasp 
the situation, alert to carry it out and persistent in following it to his final 
conclusion. He is a man who has won a host of friends because of his clean, 
open life and the interest which he has always taken in all good movements 
in the community. 



HENRY HUNT. 



The United States has drawn its people from every corner of the 
globe and, while we have citizens in Indiana representing scores of differ- 
ent countries, it is nevertheless true that the bulk of our citizenship are of 
English descent. We always refer to England as our mother country, and 
it is true that she has furnished the great majority of our citizens of today. 
The Hunt family of Hendricks county are fortunate in having traced their 
family history through past generations, and in the history of Henry Hunt, 
who is here presented, his ancestry can be traced back to the middle of the 
eighteenth century directly. To state in biblical fashion, the first descend- 
ant whose history is accurately recorded is Eleazer, whose son was Asher, 
whose son was Ithamar, whose son was Henry, whose son was Olsen. The 
Hunt family trace their ancestry back to England, where they were an hon- 
orable and distinguished family in the colonial period. Eleazer Hunt was 
a farmer of North Carolina in the latter part of the eighteenth century and 
died in that state at the age of eighty. His son Asher was born in Guilford 
county, that state, and was reared a Quaker, marrying Jane Hunt, the 
daughter of Abner and Mary (Starley) Hunt, who was a very distant rela- 
tive. Asher Hunt came to Sullivan county, Indiana, from North Carolina 
and entered two hundred acres of land on which he lived for the next six- 
teen years. He then came to Hendricks county where he bought a farm in 
the eastern part of Marion township, dying there in his eighty-fourth year. 
He and his wife, as well as the children, were Quakers. 

Asher Hunt was twice married; his first wife died and he then married 
Abigail Foster. He was a man of unimpeachable character, industrious, 
honorable and one who was universally respected by all who knew^ him. 
Ithamar Hunt, the son of Asher, was born in Sullivan county, Indiana, 
March 17, 1822, and came with his parents to Hendricks county when he 
was fourteen years of age. At the age of twenty-five he married Frances 
J. Bush, the daughter of John and Elizabeth (Norton) Bush. John Bush 
w^as a native of Kentuckv. who came to Hendricks countv and was one of 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 739 

the early pioneers of the county, dying at the age of fifty-three. Ithamar 
Hunt was a farmer all of his life and at his death, on May 14. 1903, in New 
Winchester, he had over six hundred acres of fine farming land in the 
county. He was a birthright member of the Friends church for twenty-one 
years and then joined the Baptist church. He was a consistent and faithful 
member and a liberal contributor, not only to his own church, but to others 
and to all benevolent enterprises. He was a good man in every sense of the 
word, an honest man with himself and with others. He was a devoted hus- 
band, a loving and kind father, an accommodating and genial neighbor, 
a manly and devoted Christian, one without ostentation or hypocrisy. He 
was a man of peace, quiet and unobtrusive. He never swore, never used 
liquor, was never sued. ne\er paid a cent of interest — all in all, he was one 
of nature's noblemen. 

Henry Hunt is a worthy son of a worthy father. He received his edu- 
cation in the schools of his neighborhood and remained under the parental 
roof until he was married at the age of twenty-five, although he had been 
farming for himself since he was twenty-one. After his marriage, he lived 
for the first year on the Rockville road and then built his present home in 
1878 and has resided there continuously since that time. He is a farmer 
exclusively and no one in the county raises better crops than does he. He 
has always taken an active interest in public affairs and, as a Republican, 
was elected trustee of Marion township in 1894, rendering faithful and effi- 
cient service to his fellow citizens for nearly five years in that capacit3^ 
His farm of two hundred and sixty acres, together with his wife's farm 
of one hundred and sixty, is a fine example of an up-to-date farm in every 
respect. He takes a great deal of pride in keeping everything in good re- 
pair and his buildings are always neat and attractive in appearance. 

Mr. Hunt was married April i, 1877, to Cassandra R. Higgins, the 
daughter of Michael and Elizabeth (Plaster) Higgins. She was born in 
Marion township and has lived most of her life there, spending four years 
at Ladoga before her marriage. They have one son, Olsen, w^ho was born 
March 6, 1881. He married Jesse Underwood, the daughter of Obed 
Underwood, and has one daughter. Marvel. He lives on a farm in Marion 
township. Mr. and Mrs. Hunt are both devout members of the Christian 
church of New Winchester, and subscribe liberally to its support. Mr. Hunt 
is one of the best known men in his township, a man of excellent character, 
a good neighbor and one who has always stood for the best welfare of his 
community. 



-7_j.o HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ALEXANDER RAMSEY. 

The importance that attaches to the hves, character and work of the 
early settlers of Hendricks county and the influence they have exerted upon 
the cause of humanity and civilization is one of the most absorbing themes 
that can possibly attract the attention of the local chronicler. The late 
Alexander Ramsey was a man whose great influence upon the early history 
of this county was an important factor in developing the part of the county 
in which he settled. 

Alexander Ramsey was born in Clark county, Kentucky, June 21, 1821, 
and died in Marion township, Hendricks county, Indiana, January 21. 1891. 
He was the son of Andrew and Jennie (Browning) Ramsey. Fate seems 
to play an important ])art in the li^'es of some people and in the cause of 
Alexander Ramsey it was the cause of his remaining in this county. When 
a young man he came to this county to visit his two sisters who were living 
in the county and while here he met a pretty little maid by the name of 
Martha Jane Flynn. It was a case of love at first sight and he who came 
merely to visit remained to marry and settle in this county. His wife was 
born October 14, 1838, in Marion township and on December 18, 1856, 
they were married, she being only eighteen years of age at the time of her 
marriage. This youthful bride of fifty-eight years ago is still living and en- 
joying good health. She is the daughter of James and Lucy (Miller) 
Flynn, her father being born in Clark county, Kentucky, in 1807. He was 
first married to Lucy Rigney and, after her death, to Lucy Miller in 1833. 
His second wife was born in Clark county, Kentucky, in 1816, the daughter 
of Michael and Mary Miller, who had come from Virginia to Kentucky. 
James Flynn lived in Kentucky until 1840 and then came to Marion town- 
ship, this county. He and his wife made the trip overland on horseback, 
passing through the little village of Indianapolis and over the swamp which 
is now occupied by Danville. He became one of the earliest settlers and 
was one of the most prominent farmers of the county, having over five hun- 
dred acres of land at the time of his death. August 11, 1885. He paid one 
dollar and twenty-five cents per acre and the same land today could not be 
bought for one hundred and twenty-five dollars per acre. Mr. Flynn was a 
progressive farmer and owned the first threshing machine in this section 
of the state. 

After Mr. Ramsey and his young bride were first married they re- 
turned to Kentuckv, where thev lived on a farm of Mrs. Ramsev's uncle for 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 741 

two years. They then returned to Hendricks county and bought a farm 
of one hundred and thirty acres near New Winchester for twenty-seven dol- 
lars per acre, and later they purchased seventy acres more, making a total 
of two hundred acres which is still owned by the family. Mr. and 
Mrs. Ramsey reared a family of six children: Mary Catherine, who married 
William J. Underwood; Samuel A., born February 27, 1859, who has never 
married, but has spent his whole life on the home farm. He and his motner 
have lived together on the old homestead since his father's death ; John 
Allen, who lives in Danville, Indiana; Obie L., who lives at New Winches- 
ter, where he operates a saw-mill and runs a threshing machine in the sum- 
mer; Anna May died March 2, 1881. at the age of ten as the result of an 
injury she received at school. 

Mr. Ramsey was a member of the Missionary Baptist church and was 
a faithful attendant upon all the services of the church. He w^as a man 
who was always very considerate of the rights of others and absolutely 
honest and straightforward in all of his dealings. He was held in tiigh 
respect and esteem bv everyone with whom he was associated and his life 
in every particular was above reproach. He was essentially a man of do- 
mestic tastes and lived for those w^ho were nearest and dearest to him. 



JOHN S. RAGAN. M. D. 



It is not always eas}^ to discover and defiiie the hidden forces that have 
moved a life of ceaseless activity and large professional success ; little more 
can be done than to note their manifestation in the career of the individual 
under consideration. In view of this fact, the life of the physician and 
public-spirited man of affairs whose name appears above affords a striking 
example of well defined purpose, with the ability to make that purpose sub- 
serve not only his own ends but the good of his fellow men as well. Doctor 
Ragan has long held prestige in a calling which requires for its basis sound 
mentality and intellectual discipline of a high order, supplemented by rigid, 
professional training and thorough mastery of technical knowledge with the 
skill to apply the same. In his chosen field Doctor Ragan has achieved a 
notable success, which has been duly recognized and appreciated throughout 
the section of the state where he lives. 

Dr. John S. Ragan, one of the oldest practicing physicians in Hendricks 
county, was born July 5, 1849, in Marion towaiship, Hendricks county, Indi- 



742 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ana. His parents, James \L and Lucy A. ( Smith) Ragan, were Ijoth natives 
of Kentucky and came to this county early in their hves with their parents. 
Abner Ragan, the father of James AL, came from Kentuck}- first and settled 
in Putnam count}', l)ut soon moved over into Hendricks county, where he 
lived until his death in 1864. Abner Ragan was twice married, his first wife, 
Mary, and the mother of James, lieing of the MacCoun familv. Zachariah 
Smith, the maternal grandfather of Doctor Ragan, was a native of Kentucky 
and came to Hendricks county early in its history, settling in Marion township. 
He married Agnes Dicken and they reared a family of seven children. James 
M. Ragan was a farmer and stock raiser all his life and he and his wife died 
in the faith of the Christian church. Thev lioth passed away in 1872, ha\'ing 
reared a family of eight children : Mary, deceased ; John S. ; Abner. deceased ; 
Zachariah, of North Salem. Indiana: Reuben Samuel, deceased; James, of 
Colorado; William H., of Plainfield and Aiilton B., deceased. 

Doctor Ragan spent his boyhood days on the farm and attended the dis- 
trict schools of the neighborhood. After spending two years in the Ladoga 
Academy he began teaching and taught school for the next nine years, the 
last two years being principal of the North Salem schools. W^hile still teach- 
ing he began the study of medicine and in 1887 took his first course of lectures 
in the Cincinnati Medical School. As was customary in those days, he began 
to practice before he had finished his medical course. He started to practice 
at Avon in Hendricks county and after his graduation in the spring of 1879 
from the Indiana Medical College at Indianapolis he returned to Avon and 
continued to practice there for the next seventeen years. After practicing 
a year at Denver, Colorado, where he had gone for his wife's health, he re- 
turned to Avon and remained two }'ears. In 1895 he went to P'lainfield and 
in 1904 became the physician at the Boys' School, having comi)lete charge of 
all the medical work for the next four years, after which he devoted most of 
his time to his general practice in Plainfield and vicinity until 19 13. when he 
was again given full charge as physician at the Boys" School, having given up 
his ])ractice entirely. Doctor Ragan has always taken an active interest in 
the various medical organizations with which he has been connected and has 
been president of the Hendricks County Medical Society. He also belongs to 
the Seventh District and Indiana medical societies. 

Doctor Ragan has been married twice, his first wife being Jennie L. 
Vickery, to whom he was married January i, 1880. She was born in Hen- 
dricks county and was the daughter of Henry and Elizabeth Vickery. To this 
marriage there were born two children. Dr. Charles E. Ragan, of Clinton, and 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 743 

Mrs. Ralph Bly, of Plaintiekl. Doctor Ragan's first wife died June 21, 1892, 
and on February 14, 1894, he was married to Alary E. (Huron) Cooper, the 
daughter of Abbott and Katherine Huron, of Hendricks county. There are 
no children by the second marriage, but his wife has one daughter by her 
former marriage, Katherine V. Cooper, who is a teacher in the public schools 
of Clearwater, Florida. 

In politics. Doctor Ragan has affiliated with the new Progressive party, 
but the nature of his profession precludes him from taking a very active part 
in politics. He is a loyal member of the Christian church and has been an 
elder for the past t\\entv years. He is a member of the Independent Order 
of Odd Fellows. Doctor Ragan has a large number of friends throughout 
the county who esteem him for his many sterling qualities. He takes an 
intelligent interest in the civic life of the community and his influence can 
always be found on the right side for the welfare of the community honored 
by his residence. 



BENJAMIN W. ANDERSON. 

It is not an easy task to describe adequately a man who has led an 
eminently active and busy life, and who has attained a place of relative distinc- 
tion in the community with which his interests are identified. But biography 
finds its most perfect justification, nevertheless, in the tracing and recording 
of such a history. It is, then, with a full appreciation of all that is demanded 
and of the painstaking scrutiny that must be accorded each statement, and yet 
with a feeling of satisfaction, that the writer essays the task of touching 
briefly upon the details of the record of Benjamin W. Anderson, one of the 
most substantial farmers and business men of Plainfield. 

Benjamin W. Anderson, president of the First National Bank of Plain- 
field, was born in Washington township, Hendricks county, Indiana, on 
August 29. 1862. He is the son of Thomas T. and Anna (White) Anderson, 
his father being a native of Ohio and his mother of Wayne county, Indiana. 
Thomas Anderson was a farmer and brick mason and came to this county 
before the war, settling in Washington township, where he bought a quarter 
section of land. After living on it three years, he removed to Six Points, in 
the same county, wdiere he farmed for the next nine years. He then moved 
to Iroquois county, Illinois, where he died in 1873. His widow died Septem- 
ber 24, 1898. Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Anderson were the parents of four chil- 
dren, two of whom are Vw'mg, Benjamin \\'. and Eli H., both of whom have 
lived all their lives in the countv of their nativity. 



744 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Benjamin W. .Vnderson. the immediate subject of this sketch, was born 
in a log- cabin in the clearing on his father's farm and received the limited 
education which the district schools of his time afforded. He then completed 
his schooling by attending the Central Academy at Plainfield. His whole life 
has been spent upon the farm and he is recognized as one of the most pro- 
gressive farmers of the comnninity. In addition to his crops of grain, he has 
always handled considerable live stock and no small part of his success has 
come from that side of his business. That he has been successful is shown bv 
the fact that he was one of the principal organizers and stockholders in the 
First National Bank of Plainfield. He became president of the institution 
on December 24, 1903, and has held that important place up to the present 
time. In politics he has always taken an important part in the success of the 
Republican party and in the fall of 1908 was elected to the office of township 
trustee, an office which he is still holding. This is accounted for by the fact 
that the last Legislature extended the term of office to six years. 

Mr. Anderson w-as married on July 16, 1912, to Mrs. Minnie (Mills) 
Hadley, the daughter of Aaron and Hannah Mills, and to this uunion there 
has been born one son, Benjamin Eli. Mr. Anderson has been a lifelong- 
member of the Friends church and is now one of the board of trustees of the 
Western Yearly Meeting. He is an elder in the church and is superintendent 
of the Sabbath school at Plainfield at the present time. He is one of the 
trustees of Central Academy and is xery actively interested in all matters 
pertaining to education. He is a charter member of Plainfield Lodge No. 
653, Free and Accepted Masons. In addition to his farming, stock-raising 
and banking interests, Mr. Anderson is interested in the mill and grain busi- 
ness with Hubert Brown, the firm name being the Plainfield Milling Company. 
Mr. Anderson has been one of the valued citizens of his community and has 
been a hearty supporter of all enterprises which seek to ameliorate the condi- 
tion of his fellow citizens or better the conditions of the county where he has 
spent such a busy life. 



JOSEPH LANE WILSON. 

Among the farmers of Hendricks county whose careers extend over a 
period of more than three score years is Joseph Lane Wilson, who comes 
from one of the oldest pioneer families of the state. Such people are wel- 
comed in any community, for they are the empire builders and as such have 
pushed the frontier of civilization ever westward and onward, leaving the 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 745 

green, wide-reaching wilderness and the far-stretching plains populous with 
contented people and beautiful with green fields. 

Joseph Lane Wilson, the son of Peter and Delilia (Case) Wilson, was 
born March 31, 184S, in Putnam county. Indiana. Plis father, who was 
born in Monroe county, Indiana, February 17, 1821, was the son of John 
C and Frances (Wilson) Wilson, both natives of Kentucky who came to 
Putnam countv in- the early history of Indiana and settled near Greencastle. 
John C Wilson, who was born in Kentucky September 2, 1795, and who 

died m 1870. was the son of Peter and (Sears) Wilson, who were 

natives of Tennessee, but came to Kentucky, where they lived most of their 
lives. Frances Wilson also was a native of Kentucky, born July 29, 1797. 
John Wilson, the grandfather of Joseph Lane, entered land near where the 
town of Bainbridge stands and here Peter grew to manhood. In 1838, after 
Peter was grown, his father entered another tract in Putnam county about 
three miles^outhwest of New Winchester, and on this farm Peter made his 
home after marriage, which occurred on December 10, 1840, and reared 
his familv His wife, Delilia Case, was born April 8, 1820, the daughter 
of John and Julia (Finney) Case, and died March 11, 1887. Peter Wilson 
died on July 14, 1893. John Case was born May 15. I795. and his wife 
lulia was born Mav 30, 1802. 

The children born to Peter and Delilia (Case) Wilson, with the dates 
of their births, are as follows: Jelia F.. July 2j. 1843; Jo^^" W.. ^larch 2, 
1845: Ann M., Mav 2, 1846; Joseph L., March 31, 1848; Weden F., Sep- 
tember 13, 1849; Michael T., July 21, 1851; Lewis C, June 13, 1853; Rob- 
ert C, June 8, 1856; Amanda E., August 3, 1859. 

Joseph Lane Wilson grew up on the farm entered by his grandfather, 
and received his meager schooling in the subscription schools of the period. 
He remained on the home farm until his marriage, which occurred in 1874. 
His wife was Marv J. Higgins, the daughter of Michael and Elizabeth 
(Plaster) Higgins, a sketch of whose family is given elsewhere m this vol- 
ume To this'^marriage there was born one son. Edgar, who now lives on 
the farm where his father was reared. Edgar was married in 1898 to 
Letha Thomas, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Page Thomas. Edgar and 
wife have two children, Mary and Nellie. 

The Case family, Mr. Wilson's mother's people, were among the earli- 
est settlers of Putnam countv, their ancestors having come from Connecti- 
cut in an earlv day and thence to Indiana. Two of the family, Leonard and 
Zachariah Case, recentlv died at Cleveland, Ohio, leaving a large estate 



740 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

which has not yet been settled. They were unmarried and left no will dis- 
posing of their fortune. 

Air. Wilson has lived more than forty years in Marion township am! 
in that time has always been interested in the welfare of the commnuily 
He is a public-spirited citizen who has never refused to assist in any move 
ment which promised to benefit his locality in any way and for this reason is 
justly looked upon as one of the representative men of the county. 



TOLIVER WORRELL. 



The gentleman whose name heads this sketch is widely known in Hend- 
ricks county, Indiana, and is one of the honored citizens of Danville, where 
he is living after a strenuous life of activity in connection with agricultural 
pursuits. His well directed efforts in the practical affairs of life, his capable 
management of his business interests and his sound judgment have l^rought 
him prosperity, and his life demonstrates what may l^e accomplished by any 
man of energy and ambition who is not afraid to work and has the per- 
severance to continue his labors in the face of any disaster or discouragement 
that may arise. In all the relations of life Mr. Worrell has commanded the 
confidence and respect of those with whom he has been brought into contact 
and a biographical history of this locality would not l^e complete without 
a record of his career. 

Toliver Worrell, the son of James and Elizabeth (Kenny) Worrell, was 
born in Carroll county, Virginia, on February 22, 1848. Both his parents 
were natives of Virginia and lived and died in that state. His father was a 
farmer and for many years was a justice of the peace in Carroll county. In 
Virginia at that time each county had three justices and these composed the 
county court. James Worrell was the presiding justice of this court for 
several years in his home count)'. Mr. and Mrs. James Worrell were the 
parents of eleven children, Toliver being the youngest. Four of these chil- 
dren are still li\ing, William K.. of Indianapolis; Robert L., of Tiklen. this 
county; Mrs. Ellen H. Cook, of Indianapolis, and Toliver Worrell, the im- 
mediate subject of this sketch. 

Toliver Worrell was reared on his father's farm in \'irginia and re- 
ceived a good common school education in his home schools. At the age of 
twenty-one he came to Indiana, locating near Avon, Hendricks county. He 
rented a farm and continued to manage it for about two vears, after which. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 747 

he moved to Aliddle township, near Pittsboro, this county, where he remained 
only one year, removing to Lincohi township at the end of that time, where 
he farmed for the next five years. He then settled permanently in Middle 
township, near Pittsboro, and remained there until 1902, when he removed to 
Danville, where he has continued to reside. .Shortly after moving back to 
Middle township the last time he bought a farm there and has added to it 
from time to time. He still owns this tract and has now general supervision 
of the management of the farm. 

Toliver Worrell was married to Julia O. Parker, of Middle township. 
Hendricks county, in 1875. Tv.o children by this marriage are li\'ing in this 
county. N. E. and J. O. Worrell, flis first wife died January 5. 1881. In 
1900 Air. Worrell married for his second wife Katherine Miller, the daughter 
of John and Ann t Bartley) Aliller, of Washington township. 

Mr. Worrell has been a Republican since reaching his majoritv and has 
always taken more or less of an active part in politics. For the past fifteen 
vears he has been a member of the county council of Hendricks county, and 
has taken an active interest in the affairs of his home county. In private life 
he is broad-minded and liljeral. keeping abreast of the times and in touch with 
current thought. He stands high in the esteem of those with whom he 
mingles and has many warm friends who esteem him for his many worthy 
qualities. Quiet and unostentatious, and seeking the sequestered ways of life 
rather than its tumult and strife, he has ever attended strictly to his own 
aft'airs and made better all who came within the range of his influence. 



NICODEMIS HARRIS. 



The sixty years which Nicodemis Harris has spent in this county have 
brought him in close touch with a large number of people and the reputa- 
tion which he holds for square dealing and upright conduct in all things 
stamps him as a man who has lived a life above reproach. It is a well-es- 
tablished fact that a man can not live unto himself, but must be a part of the 
society which makes up his particular community. Mr. Harris has always 
taken a conspicuous part in the various movements which have had to do 
with the welfare of his locality and is rightly regarded as one of the repre- 
sentative men of Hendricks county. 

Nicodemis Harris, the son of Nicodemis and Bedial J. (Davis) Har- 
ris, was born in Marion township. Hendricks county, March 4, 185 1, and 



748 HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 

has spent his whole hfe in the county of his nativity. His father was born 
September 29. 1810. in Mercer county, Kentucky, and his mother was also 
born in the same county, January 12, 1814. His parents were married in 
Kentucky and came to Hendricks county shortly after their marriage, arriv- 
ing in ]\Iarion township in 1833. The grandparents of Nicodemis, Jr., 
were Frederick and Nancy (Higgins) Harris, who came from their native 
state of Virginia to Kentucky by way of the Ohio river. They first settled 
at Fort Harrod and later entered land in the vicinity of the fort. 

Nicodemis Harris, Sr., applied for government land in 1833 and in 
1834 he received a deed written on genuine sheep skin and signed by Presi- 
dent Andrew Jackson. This deed is now a very highly prized document in 
the hands of Nicodemis, Jr. His deed called for one hundred and thirty- 
four acres in Marion township. Later he entered eighty acres in Putnam 
county, just across the township line to the west. He lived the life of a 
plain farmer all his life, and died in his seventy-ninth year, in 1889. His 
wife passed away in January, 1896. She was an ardent member of the Mis- 
sionary Baptist church at New Winchester and a woman of exceptionally 
strong character. Mr. and Mrs. Nicodemis Harris, Sr.. were the parents 
of eight children : Frederick. Joseph. Thomas, Mary. John, Mrs. Virginia 
Flynn. Nicodemis, Jr., and William. All of the children are deceased ex- 
cept the last two, Nicodemis and William. 

Nicodemis Harris has spent all his life on the farm, doing all the 
work which falls to the lot of the average farmer. He received a good prac- 
tical education in the district schools and has supplemented it by wide read- 
ing since leaving school. He lived with his parents until they both passed 
away and was very solicitous in his care of them. Fie and his brother Will- 
iam have always lived together and are very much attached to one another. 

Mr. Flarris was married in 1893 to Rosa Edwards, the daughter of 
Joshua and Mary (Casey) Edwards. Joshua was a native of North Caro- 
lina, being born in that state in 1820. He came to Indiana with his parents 
when he was a lad of ten. His father, John Edwards, entered government 
land near Coatesville, this county, and on this farm Joshua was reared to 
manhood. His wife was a native of Ireland and came to this county with 
her parents when a small child. Mr. Edwards died January 18. 1905. and 
his widow passed away on July 18, 1909. 

Mr. and Mrs. Edwards reared a family of fourteen children, only four 
of whom are living: Mrs. Nora Pickett; Rosa, the wife of Mr. Harris; 
Eliza and Isaac. Mr. and Mrs. Harris have two sons who are still under 
the parental roof, Hilden and Frederick. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 749 

Mr. Harris is a stanch Democrat, but confines his political activities to 
the casting of his vote upon election days. He is a congenial man to meet 
and is well known in his county as an excellent judge of good stock. He 
and his family have many warm friends in the community in which they 
UvQ who esteem them for their good qualities of head and heart. 



CANADY H. DOWXARD. 

There can be no more comprehensive history written of a city or county, 
or even of a state and its people, than that which deals with the life work of 
those who. by their own endeavor and indomitable energy, have placed them- 
selves where they may \\ell deserve the title of "progressive," and in this sketch 
will be found the record of one who has outstripped the less active and less 
able plodders along the pathway of life. Canady H. Downard is one who has 
not been subdued by the many obstacles and failures that come to e\"ery one, 
but has made them stepping stones to higher things and at the same time 
that he was winning his way in material things of life gained a reputation 
for uprightness and probit}'. 

Canady H. Downard, the son of David ]\I. and Cassandra (Morgan) 
Downard, was born in ?iIarion township, Hendricks county, Indiana, on 
December 2t,, 1862. His parents were both natives of this county, his father 
being a farmer and stock raiser and one of the substantial men of the town- 
ship. The grandfather of Canady H. Downard was Judge James Downard, 
who was one of the first probate judges of the Hendricks county court and had 
the honor of laying out- the town of Danvihe in 1825. Judge Downard was 
a native of Pennsylvania, came to the Northwest territory about 1811. re- 
moved to Kentucky a few years later and settled near Brooklyn. Indiana, in 
1818. He afterwards moved to Indianapolis and shortly afterwards perma- 
nently located in Plainfield, where he lived until his death in 1846. To the sub- 
ject's father were born ten children : James A. ; Mrs. ^Martha Hammond, of 
Danville: Mrs. Alary J. Anderson, of Anderson; Canady H. ; William, of East 
St. Louis; Erie, deceased; Oliver, of Lynn, Indiana: Erank, of Danville, and 
two who died in infancy. 

Canady H. Downard was reared on the farm and received his common 
school education in the Alarion township schools. He tben took a course in 
the Central Normal College at Danville, after which he returned to the farm, 
where he has continued to live until the present time. In 1889 he was mar- 



750 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ried to Nettie Hanirick, the daughter of W'ilHam V. and Dicy (Blackburn) 
Hamrick. Mr. Hamrick was born in Flemingsburg, Kentucky, and came to 
this county in his boxhood with his parents, who settled in Marion township. 
He became one of the most successful farmers in the county and owned 
seventeen hundred acres at the time of his death. His w'ife was born in 
Madison county, Kentucky, the daughter of Air. and Mrs. Tames Blackburn. 
Mr. Flamrick was in the dry goods business for a time at Danville, but sold 
out and devoted his energies to the raising of Hambletonian horses and other 
fine stock. In his early life he was a Republican, but later in life he l^ecame a 
Prohibitionist. He and his wife were members of the Friends church. She 
died in 1898. 

After Mr. Downard was married he began farming in Marion township 
and has alw^ays lived in that township with the exception of five months when 
he li\'ed in Danville. He now has a fine farm of three hundred and twentv- 
fi\e acres which he keeps in a high state of cultixation and in excellent repair 
at all times. He pays particular attention to stock raising and has made a 
success of it. He is a man of more than ordinary business ability and is able 
to grasp a proposition and determine its value very accurately. He is a quiet, 
sociable and pleasant man to meet and makes a stranger feel at home in a short 
time. His career has in every way been commendable and accounts for the 
high esteem in w^hich he is held in the community in which he lives. 



JAMES L. McCOUX, 



The success of men in business or any vocation depends upon character 
as well as upon knowledge, it being a self-evident proposition that honesty 
is the l)est policy. Business demands confidence and where that is lacking 
business ends. In everv communitv some men are known for their upright 
lives, strong common sense and moral worth rather than for their wealth or 
political standing. Their neighbors and acquaintances respect them, the 
younger generations heed their example, and when they "wrap the drapery of 
their couches about them and lie down to pleasant dreams" posterity listens 
with reverence to the story of their (juiet and useful li\es. Among such men 
of a past generation in Indiana was the late James L. McCoun, of Danville, 
Hendricks county, who was not only a progressive man of aiTairs, successful 
in material pursuits, but a man of modest and unassuming demeanor, well 
educated, a fine type of the reliable, self-made American, a friend to the poor. 



I 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 75 1 

charitable to the faults of his neighbors and who always stood ready to unite 
with them in every good work and active in the support of' laudable public 
enterprises. He was proud of Danville and of the grand state of Indiana and 
zealous of their progress and prosperity. He was a man who in every respect 
merited the high esteem in which he was universally held, for he was a man 
of public spirit, intellectual attainments and exemplary character. 

James L. McCoun, one of Danville's best known citizens, was born in 
Putnam county, this state, on November 7. 1844. and died at his home in 
Danville. December 25. iqog. He was the son of ^Vard McCoun. one of the 
early pioneer settlers of the state. For many years Mr. McCoun was in the 
dry goods business in Danville, having associated with him in the firm his 
sons. Charles and Raleigh, and his nephew. Jam.es McCoun. He had made a 
success in business ranks and was regarded as one of the most substantial 
citizens of the town. 

Air. ]^lcCoun was married on August 12, 1863, to Fidelia McCoun, and 
to this union were born three sons, John S., who died February 18, 1880; 
Charles L. and Raleigh B., w^ho are both now living in Danville. He was a 
lo^■ing and affectionate husband and father and was greatly interested in his 
domestic life. Xo father ever cared for his boys and looked after their wel- 
fare any more conscientiously than did he. 

Mr. McCoun was a man among men, always stood for the right and con- 
sidered those around him and those with whom he came in contact, and was 
always willing that others should have their own views on any subject, al- 
though they might be different from his own. On the other hand, he would 
never compromise when he thought he would be doing something wrong. As 
a friend he was true in every respect and any one in considering him on any 
question for the good of the community, always knew he w^as to be found on 
the right side. As a member of the Christian church he was one of the most 
faithful and there is no place outside of his home relations where he will be 
more missed than in the Christian church of Danville, where he had been a 
member for man}- years and where he had been an elder, serving faithfully 
and conscientiously. He was faithful in his attendance, not only at the regu- 
lar Lord's day services of the church, but when in health was seldom absent 
from the mid-week prayer meeting, and those who attended these mid-week 
meetings always said that the talks of Mr. McCoun were very inspirational. 

The funeral services were held in the church where he had so long been 
a devoted member, and were conducted b}' the Rev. Goodnight and Re\-. Elvet 
E. Moorman and Rev. Edgar Fav Daugherty, a former pastor of the church. 



752 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

who delivered a sermon which was a master[)iece. The funeral was one of 
the largest e\er held in Dan\ille and the church was filled with relatives and 
hundreds of sympathizing and sorrowing friends. Mr. McCoun was prom- 
inent in all that counts for the ideal man. He had character of the highest 
type and stood for the best things. He was a part and parcel of those 
thoughts which are pure and his actions scpiared with his thoughts. He had 
the facult}- of becoming interested in the daily affairs of the people about him 
and when one met him he felt at once that Air. AlcCoun was genuinely sympa- 
thetic and sympathetically genuine. Some way or other one felt that there 
was just a little more sunshine in the world after he met him. Any move- 
ment that had for its object the betterment of his home town met with his 
hearty supptjrt. It can be truly said that his faith, his conscience, his purity, 
his spiritual service have passed from this world to the better world to come. 



JOHN E. ENGLISH. 



More than half a century has dissolved in the mists of the past since 
John E. English was born and during that momentous period he has v^it- 
nessed and taken an active part in the general development of Hendricks 
county and is highly esteemed as one of its respected and worthy farmers, 
and during that time his integrity has never been cjuestioned, nor -has any- 
thing savoring in the least of dishonor ever attached to his name or reputa- 
tion. He has e\er tried to measure up to the standard of correct manhood 
and Hendricks county is proud to number him among its representative men. 

John E. English, the son- of Myzeal and Malinda (Arnold) English, 
was born four and one-half miles north of Danville, Indiana, on March 30, 
1856. Myzeal English was a native of New Jersey, as were his parents. He 
came to this county with them when he was about eight years of age. Jona- 
than English, the father of Myzeal, entered land near the town of Danville 
and here he lived until his death. Myzeal English received schooling in the 
subscription schools of that day, and from his boyhood up had an overwhelm- 
ing thirst for knowledge. When a mere youth he decided that he wanted to 
become a physician and with that end in view "read" medicine, as was the 
custom in those days, w'ith some of the local physicians of his neighborhood. 
Afterwards he practiced in Hamilton and Boone counties for a number of 
years and later taught school in Center township for several terms. He was 
a man of great force of character and was one of the most influential men in 




JOHN E. ENGLISH 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 753 

the community. In addition to being a practicing physician, school teacher 
and farmer, he was, for a long time, a justice of peace in Union township. 
Because of his reputation for honesty and uprightness, men with grievances 
preferred to have them tried before Doctor English. Doctor English had a 
farm a mile and a half south of Lizton, after his return from Boone county, 
and on this farm of ninety-seven and a half acres he spent his spare time. He 
was married in March, 1854, to Malinda Arnold. To this union were born 
six children: George, of Shelby county, Indiana; John, whose history is 
herein portrayed ; Mrs. Mary E. Jane Rutledge ; Mrs. Sarah Helen Hamilton, 
deceased; Mrs. Eva Ogle and Charles H. Doctor English was a Democrat 
his wdiole life, but never held any public office other than that of justice of 
peace. He died May 31, 1906, of paralysis on his farm south of Lizton. 
His wife died December 3, 1907. 

John E. English was given a good education by his worthy father and 
assisted on the home farm until his marriage. He was married October 25, 
1882, to Florence Talbott, the daughter of Willis and Nancy (McCoun) Tal- 
bott. Willis Talbott was born in Bourbon county, Kentucky, and in that state 
married Nancy McCoun in November, 1840. In February, 1841, the young 
couple came to Hendricks county on horseback and settled first on a farm in 
the south part of Eel River township, where they lived a few years, then 
moved to the first farm south of the present home of Mr. English and here 
spent the remainder of their lives. Mr. Talbott was born in 181 1 and died 
in 1881 and his wife died in 1898. There were eleven children in the Tal- 
bott family : Aria, deceased ; Mrs. Rachel Griffes, deceased ; John T., de- 
ceased; Dr. Robert C, of California; Nicholas L., deceased; Charles W., of 
California; Mrs. Mary L. Thomas, deceased; Nanny, deceased; Mrs. Scottie 
Sheets; Henry Clay, deceased, and Florence, the wife of Mr. English. Mr. 
and Mrs. English have two children, Mrs. Erie Inez Conn, deceased, and 
Willis M., who is salesman for the Stewart Talking Machine Company at 
Indianapolis. He married Helen Foore. 

Mr. English is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at 
Danville and the Knights of Pythias at Lizton. He and his wife are mem- 
bers of the Daughters of the Rebekah at Danville. While he has been a 
stanch Democrat all his life, he has confined his party activities to the cast- 
ing of his vote at election time. As a citizen of the community and as the 
head of the family, Mr. English has been true in every relation of life to his 
highest ideals, and in no situation has he fallen short of the full measure of 
(48) 



754 HENDRICKS COUNTY^ INDIANA. 

men. He has always been found on the right side of all questions affecting 
the public welfare and his life has been a credit to the county honored by his 
citizenship. 



RICHARD T. DORMAN. 



The career of the well-known gentleman whose name forms the caption 
for this biographical memoir was a strenuous and varied one. entitling him 
to honorable mention among the representative citizens of his day and genera- 
tion in the county with which his life was so closely identified for so manv 
years. Although he passed to the great beyond March 22, 19 14, yet his in- 
fluence still pervades the lives of a wide circle of friends and acquaintances 
who delighted to honor him. .\s a private citizen, as a man of business, as 
a valiant soldier of the Civil War, he was always true to himself and his fellow 
men. and the tongue of calumny never touched him. Although he had been 
in this country but two short years w^hen the Civil War opened, he went to the 
front and fought as bravely for his adopted country as any of her native sons. 

Richard T. Dorman. who lived a retired life in Indianapolis for about 
one year after a long and successful business career in Hendricks county, was 
born April 10, 1843, i^'' Brighton, England. Both of his parents were natives 
of England, and his father, Richard, never came to America. After his 
father's death his mother, Ann (Kent) Dorman, came to this country with her 
five children, landing in New York in i860. While Richard, the subject ot 
this sketch, remained in New York for some time, his mother and the other 
children went on to Kansas, where the mother died several years ago. The five 
children are as follows: Richard T., the oldest one of the family; James, 
who is now living in Kansas; Alfred, deceased; John, now a resident of Kan- 
sas ; and Henry, who lives in Washington. 

Richard T. Dorman was seventeen years of age when he first saw the 
shores of this country and for the first eight months of his life in the New 
World he worked in the city of New York. In 1861 he came west and finally 
stopped in Hendricks county, Indiana, where he found employment on the 
farm of Jack Parker, a farmer living south of Pittsboro. He continued to 
work for him until September, 1862, when he enlisted in Company H, Ninety- 
ninth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry. He served until the close of 
the war and participated in thirteen engagements, among which were the 
battles of Chickamauga, Lookout Mountain and all the battles which General 
Sherman fought in his famous campaign to the sea. At Dallas, Georgia, he 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 755 

was shot in the head on June 13, 1863, '^"t his heavy cap saved him from 
fatal injury. 

Mr. Dorman came back to Hendricks county after he was mustered out 
and at once enrolled as a student in the Northwestern Christian University 
at Indianapolis. After remaining in school for some time he was compelled 
to take up some occupation for a living and. getting an opportunity to learn 
the plasterer's trade, he took that up and followed it until 1875. when he 
started in the mercantile business at Pittsboro, in Hendricks county. He was 
very successful from the start and for the next thirty years he maintained a 
general store in that place. He was a worthy representative of that foreign- 
born element in our population which has played such an important part in 
the development of our state. During his long business career he not only 
gained the confidence of his fellow business men, but as a man of force of 
character, upright and honest in his dealings with his fellow citizens, he gained 
the esteem of a large circle of friends and acquaintances in Hendricks county. 

In 1902 Mr. Dorman sold his store at Pittsboro and removed to his farm 
in Putnam county, where he lived until 191 1, but the call of the counter and 
the jingle of the cash register took him back into the business world again. 
He went to El wood, Indiana, in 191 1 and engaged in the mercantile business 
for eight months, but Father Time induced him to sell out and retire perma- 
nently from active business and he took his advice. He went to Indianapolis, 
where he lived until a few days before his death, when he moved to Browns- 
burg. 

Mr. Dorman was married in 1873 to Seralda J. Dillon, who was born in 
Pittsboro. They are the parents of a very interesting family of ten children, 
all of whom are living but one. The children, in the order of their birth, are 
as follows : Ivan, of Martinsville, Indiana ; Earl, who is an officer in the 
Eourth United States Cavalry, and now stationed in Hawaii ; Erwin. of 
Montana; Ulrey, who is connected with the government survey service in 
New Mexico ; Hubert, wl^o is a solicitor for the Metropolitan Business Col- 
lege of Chicago; Clifford, who is now studying to be an electrical engineer; 
and three who are still under the parental roof. Alma, Mina (now INIrs. I. C. 
Gharst) and Kent. Mr. and Mrs. Dorman had just pride in their children 
and gave them the best education obtainable. They are all making a success 
in life and refiect honor on their parents. 

Mr. Dorman was a life-long Republican, but was never a candidate for 
any public office, feeling that his business affairs demanded all of his time. 
However, he always kept in touch with the current issues of the day and dis- 



756 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

cussed them intelligently. He was a consistent adherent of the Christian 
church and always contributed to the support of that denomination. Person- 
ally, Mr. Dorman was a man of clean character and ever exerted a whole- 
some and healthful influence in the community, giving his support to every 
movement which promised to advance the welfare of the localities in which he 
lived. 



CHARLES C. CLAY. 



Charles C. Clay, the son of John J. Crittenden Clay and Alattie ( Walker) 
Clay, was born November 2^, 1874, in Eel River township, this county. He 
was given a good common school education in the district schools of his home 
neighborhood, and early in life decided to devote his attention to agriculture 
and stock raising. His father had ])een a successful farmer and stock dealer 
and he worked with him until his marriage, and in this way received a prac- 
tical education along those lines which he intended to make his life work. 
He continued to reside for two years after his marriage on his father's farm 
and then bought a farm one and one-half miles west of Xorth Salem, which, 
with forty acres thai; he had inherited from his grandmother, gave him a tine 
tract of two hundred and fifty-five acres. Here he lived for seven years, 
and then moved into N'orth Salem, where he has since resided. He still 
manages his farm, luit puts most of his attention to the buying and shi]jping 
of live stock in car load lots. Lie keeps his farm well stocked at all times by 
buying the cattle in the city markets and placing them on his farm for fatten- 
ing. In this way he makes use of all his own feed and grain which is '"aised 
on his land. 

Mr. Cla}' was married in October, 1897, to Adina Emmons, daughter 
of James M. and Elizal^ieth ( Trotter) Emmons. Her father was born Octo- 
ber 28, 1828, in Giles county, Virginia, the son of Jehu and Sarah (Hender- 
son) Emmons. \\'hen James M. was about eight years of age his parents 
moved to this state and located in Marion township, this county. About 
three }-ears later they permanently located in Eel River township, where 
they lixed the remainder of their lives. James M. Emmons was married in 
January, 1853, to Elizabeth l^rotter, a natix'e of this count}- and the daugh- 
ter of James and Sarah ( Whitt) Trotter, early pioneers of Hendricks county. 
After his marriage, James M. lived at North Salem, where he followed the 
trade of a carpenter and became a prosperous contractor and builder, an oc- 
cupation which he followed the remainder of his life except when holding 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 757 

public office. In 1878 he was elected sherifif of Hendricks county and four 
years later was re-elected. Upon leaving the sheriff's office he bought a farm 
two miles south of North Salem, where he lived for ten years. He then 
sold his farm and moved to North Salem, where he has since lived. Mr. 
and Mrs. Emmons reared a family of eleven children, eight of whom are 
still living : Oscar, of North Salem ; Jewel, of Indianapolis ; Leonidas, of 
Texas; Eldred, of Nebraska; Sarah Catherine, the wife of Nathan Davis, 
of Denver, Colorado; Ida, the widow of Wilson Haynes; Gertrude, the wife 
of Thaddeus Banta, of Decatur. Illinois, and Adina, the wife of Mr. Clay. 
The mother of these children died September 6, 19 12. Mr. and Airs. Emmons 
were both members of the Christian church. 

Mr. Clay is a member of the Knights of Pythias, and he and his wife 
are both consistent members of the Christian church of their town. They 
are the parents of four children, Mary. Emmons. Josephine and John J. C. 
Mr. Clay is one of the sterling and substantial citizens of North Salem, a 
man whose strong qualities demand respect, and whose congenial manner 
has won him manv friends. 



SAMUEL SHERMAN WATERS. 

It is not given to all men to do more than one thing and do it well, but 
in the case of Samuel S. \\'aters it is found that he has followed three dis- 
tinct professions and in each has given equally efficient and faithful serv- 
ice. Each position which he has held has called for special attainment and 
qualifications and in each case he has measured up to the full requirements 
of the position. For twenty-fi\'e years he was a successful school teacher in 
this county and then he entered the new'spaper business at North Salem and 
in this was equally successful; later he was appointed postmaster of North 
Salem and as a result of civil service examination he holds this office as long 
as he performs his duties properly. \\'ith his superior qualifications and w-ith 
his attention to his business, it means that he will hold this office as long 
as he lives, or until he resigns. His life has been a busy one. 

Samuel Sherman Waters, son of Isaac B. and Elizabeth Ann (Watts) 
Waters, was born February 6, 1865, about three miles northeast of Browns- 
burg. The father, Isaac B. Waters, was born March 10. 1832. in Brown 
county. Ohio, and was the son of Philip and Lydia (Gardner) Waters. 
Philip Waters and his wife came to Hendricks county in 1834, when Isaac 



^■^S HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

B. was two years of age. and entered one hundred and twenty acres of land 
on November 3, 1834. Philip Waters died in 185 1, at the age of fifty-one, 
having been born in Brown county, Ohio, in 1800. His wife died in 1863. 
yir. and Mrs. Philip Waters were the parents of twelve children, Isaac being 
the only one who is living; the eleven deceased are as follows: Gary, Benja- 
min, Lucinda. Reynolds, Joseph, John, Raszilla, Matilda, and three who died 
in infancy. Isaac B. Waters was first married in 1858 to Elizabeth S. Walter, 
and to this union were born three children, two who died in infancy and Airs 
1^'annie Williamson. Isaac B. Waters married his second wife. \vho was 
Elizabeth A. Watts, on Noveml^er 19, 1863, and to this union 
were born fixe children, three dying in infancy, Samuel Sherman, whose 
history is herein given, and John T. Isaac Waters has lived in this county 
practically all of his life, spending two years, from 1865 to 1867. in Illinois. 
In addition to his farming, he was also a carpenter and cabinet-maker and 
in 1868 he went into the undertaking business. This he followed until 1904. 
when he transferred his business to his son John, who followed the same 
until 1913, when he sold out to W. C. Hicks. Isaac B. Waters was one of 
the progressive business men of Pittsboro. He built the block where he con- 
ducted his undertaking and furniture establishment, later selling this to 
Howard Stanley. He was very much interested in Masonry and had serxed 
seven terms as master of the Pittsboro lodge. He was justice of the peace 
for several years and was elected three times afterwards, but declined to 
serve. In addition to his career as a private citizen, he served a short time 
in the Civil War, enlisting October i, 1864, in Company C. Twenty-fifth 
Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and fought in the battles in North 
Carolina under Sherman in the spring of 1865. He was discharged June 
10, 1865, at Washington, D. C, and mustered out in July following. 

Samuel S. Waters has lived in this county all of his life wnth the excep- 
tion of two years when his parents were in Illinois. After graduating from 
the common schools, he attended the Central Normal College at Danville 
and then began teaching school in this county. For the next twenty years 
he was engaged in teaching at and near Pittsboro, Lizton and North Salem 
and was regarded as one of the most successful teachers of the county. In 
1906 he bought the North Salon Herald of B. M. Pace and continued as 
editor, for the next seven years. In 1909 he was appointed postmaster of 
North Salem and later took the civil service examination and, the ofiice 
being in the fifth class, he will retain the position as long as his services are 
satisfactory. Two rural routes out of Pittsboro serve about three hundred 
rural patrons. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 759 

In February, 1889, Mr. Waters was married to Ethel Wills, the daughter 
of J. M. and Alice (Dillon) Wills, of Pittsboro. To this marriage have 
been born two children. Horace Monroe and Mary Alice. Mr. Waters is a 
member of the North Salem lodge of Free and Accepted Masons. He has a 
pleasant and attractive home in Pittsboro, where the spirit of genuine hos- 
pitality is always in evidence and where he and his wife delight to entertain 
their many friends. He has always been a man of public-spirited energy 
and while a resident of Pittsboro has given his hearty support to all move- 
ments of a public nature which were directed towards the welfare of the com- 
munity. He has been true to life in its every phase and the feeling of the 
community towards him is shown in the confidence and regard in which he 
is held bv all who know him. 



BERT A. WHrrE. 



Among the well-known and ppoular citizens of Hendricks county is 
Bert A. White, a business man of Brownsburg and the trustee of Lincoln 
township. He is a man who, by the exercise of his keen faculties, soundness 
of judgment and honest dealings with his fellow men, has earned a comfort- 
able competency and is justly deserving of the high esteem in which he is 
held by his fellow citizens. 

Bert A. White, the son of Vincent and Cassandra (Black) White, was 
born August 8, 1867, in the township where he has always made his home. 
Vincent White was a native of Kentucky, and when about six years of age 
came to Indiana with his parents. Asa and Margaret (Hunter) White, who 
settled in Hendricks county. Asa White was a wagon-maker by trade and 
first settled in Danville, where he operated a shop for a few years, but later 
purchased a farm and continued his wagon making on the farm for the rest 
of his life. He made the wagons at times when he was nor able to work 
on the farm, and in this way added not a little to his annual income. V^incent 
White was reared on his father's farm and followed the occupation of a 
farmer all his life. After his marriage he lived on a farm near his father's 
place for a time and then moved to his wife's father's farm, where he lived 
twenty years. He is now living retired in Brownsburg. Cassandra Black, 
the wife of Vincent White, was born in Kentucky, coming here with her 
parents, John and Virginia (CamplDell) Black, when she \vas a small child. 

Bert A. White grew up near Brownsburg and has lived in the towai of 



760 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Brownsbnrg since he was twenty-one years of age. Most of his hfe he has 
been engaged in the meat business, and much of this time has conducted a 
meat shop in Brownsburg. He and his brother-in-law, Edgar Thompson, 
were in partnership for a time, and within ten years they sold and bought 
back their place of business several different times. From 1899 to 1903 Mr. 
White was a live-stock broker in the stock yards at Indianapolis, but again 
returned to Brownsburg, where he engaged in the meat business with his 
brother-in-law. Upon his return from Indianapolis he and his brother-in- 
law also operated a saw-mill for two years, afterwards selling the mill and 
engaging again in the meat business, which they continued until 19 12, when 
Mr. White retired from this business altogether. 

In 1908 Mr. White was elected as trustee of Lincoln township, and since 
1912, when he closed out his meat business, has given his entire attention to 
the duties of this important office. Since the 19 13 Legislature extended his 
term of office two years, he is still holding the office and his term will not 
expire until the end of 19 14. He attends strictly to the various duties connect- 
ed with this position and is making a very competent and efficient official. 
There is no more important office in the United States than that of the 
humble trustee, and no other official handles as much real power as does he. 
He is both an administrative and legislative official and is practically the 
king within his own bailiwick. 

Mr. White was married June 16, 1889, to Mary E. Thompson, the daugh- 
ter of Squire and Millicent (Griggs) Thompson, both of whom were born, 
reared and married near Richmond, Kentucky. Squire Thompson was the 
son of Jesse and Mary (Little) Thompson, both of whom lived and died 
in Kentucky, and his wife was the daughter of Martin and Eliza (Burgess) 
Griggs, who were also life-long residents of Kentucky. The Thompsons came 
to Indiana and settled in Hendricks county about 1870. Squire Thompson 
was a stock buyer and moved to Brownsburg about t88i, where he remained 
until his death, which occurred in 1906. He was an active Republican and 
he and his wife are loyal and consistent meml^ers of the Christian church. He 
was a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of 
Pythias and was known as a very industrious and progressive man in every 
way. He was a public-spirited citizen, who was always on the alert for the 
welfare of his community. His wife died in 1905. Mr. and Mrs. White 
are the parents of four children: Bessie A., the wife of William H. Cosby, of 
Indianapolis, has one son, Harold ; Nellie, William Leslie and Herbert, the 
last three named being still under the parental roof. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 761 

Mr. White lends his support to the Democratic party at all times and 
has always been a prominent figure in the caucuses and conventions of his 
party. He is a member of the Knights of Pythias and the Tribe of Ben-Hur, 
taking an active interest in the workings of these fraternal orders, while he 
and his wife are both loyal and consistent members of the Christian church, 
to which they give their zealous support. He and his wife have worked hard 
for their success and they made what they have honestly and they can claim 
a wide circle of friends here who rejoice with them in their prosperity. They 
started out in life without much in the way of worldly goods, but ha^•e work- 
ed hard together, have been economical and managed well and for this 
reason they have the entire respect and esteem of all who know them, for 
their lives have been above reproach and they are regarded as good neighbors 
and obliging friends. 



PHILLIP B. HERRING. 



The psalmist says that three score and ten years is the allotted span of 
man's life and yet there are scores of people living in Hendricks county who 
have passed that age and hundreds of others who are just approaching it. 
Among the latter is Phillip B. Herring, who was born in 1846 in Hendricks 
county, near Clayton. His parents were Azriah and Ellen (Beasley) Herring, 
both natives of Kentucky, who both came to this county in early days with 
their parents and were married at Belleville. Azriah Herring worked by the 
day at various kinds of employment for the first ten or twelve years after 
his marriage, when he purchased one hundred and twenty acres of land 
in the western part of Brown township. On this farm he lived for the next 
thirty years, when he sold it and bought another farm in the northwestern 
part of the same township, where he lived until his death. Mr. and Mrs. 
.^7riah Herring reared a family of fourteen children. 

Phillip B. Herring lived under the parental roof until he was married in 
1874 and often laughs because he was married at seven o'clock on the morn- 
ing of January ist, saying that for once he started the new year right. Pre- 
vious to his marriage he had purchased thirty-three acres of land where he 
now resides, and since that time has added twenty-seven acres more until he 
is now owner of sixty acres of as fine farming land as can be found in the 
county. On this farm he has a good house and large and commodious barns 
and outbuildings, and has his farm well improved in every wav. 

Mr. Herring was married to America Walker, the daughter of Robert 



y(y2 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

and Elizabeth Ann (Menefee) Walker, who were both natives of Ken- 
tucky, coming- to this county after their marriage, settling in Washington 
township about 1862, but later buying forty acres of land in Brown town- 
ship. America Walker was one of three children living at home when she was 
married. Mr. and Mrs. Herring are the parents of four children: Minnie 
Alice, who married- Conrad Marker, the son of Amos and Laura Marker, 
and they live just across the road from Mr. Herring and have a family of 
four children, Lawrence, Cleo, Eula L. and Violet A. ; Angle Belle is the 
wife of Virgil S. Watson, the editor of the Bronmshurg Record, whose history 
is given elsewhere in this volume. Mr. and Mrs. W^atson have one daugh- 
ter. Hazel Bernice; Mary E., w^ho lives at home, and Carl C, who married 
Sallie Funkhouser, the daughter of Lucien and Mira (Crane) Funkhouser. 
Carl is a farmer living in this township. • 

Mr. and Mrs. Herring are both loyal and faithful members of the Metho- 
dist Protestant church at Brownsl)urg and give it their zealous support, having 
always been interested in the acti\ities of this denomination. Mr. Herring, in 
addition to his farming interests, made a specialty of breeding fine horses and 
has won several prizes at the county and state fairs with some of his best 
stock. In recent years he has retired from active work and at the present 
time is only supervising the management of his farm. He is a well preserved 
man, despite his sixty-eight years, and has a host of friends wherever he is 
known. Through his long residence in this county he has gained an en- 
viable reputation for hii integrity and generosity, and is justly regarded as 
one of the representative men of his community. 



GEORGE B. DAVIS. 



There is nothing which stimulates a man to deeds of worth and a life 
of uprightness and rectitude more than the recollection of the strength of 
character and examples of right living wdiich have been shown bv his forbears. 
In this respect Mr. Davis is fortunate beyond the majority of men in being 
descended from a line of men who have been in their communities men of 
strength and influence, doing their duty well, whether in the peaceful pursuits 
of ordinary life or in positions of public trust. A heritage of such memory 
of the lives of one's forefathers is of more value than a heritage of material 
wealth. In the business affairs of North Salem the subject of this sketch 
occupies a position of importance and among those who are today conserving 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 763 

the commercial and industrial prosperity of this community none occupy a 
higher standing among their associates than he whose name appears at 
the head of this sketch. 

George B. Davis, a banker of North Salem, was born April 14. 1869, 
near this town. His parents were Francis Marion and Sarah E. (Brown) 
Davis. Francis Marion Davis was born near North Salem in 1837. the son 
of Nathan and Nancy Davis, who came to this county about 1833 ^^o"^ 
Mount Sterling, Kentucky. Nathan and Nancy Davis spent the remainder 
of their lives in North Salem, dying here in the early history of the state. 
Francis Alarion grew up to manhood in this count}', farmed, operated a saw- 
mill, flour-mill, a planing-mill, dealt extensively in lumber in Indiana, Illi- 
nois and Kentucky, and was one of the most enterprising business men who 
ever managed a financial transaction in this county. He was active up until 
the time of his death in 1887. He was a member of the Masonic order, active 
in the Christian church, a public-spirited citizen, who was very frank in 
his manner. His wife, Sarah E. Brown, was born near Cove Spring, Ken- 
tucky, and came to this county early in childhood with her parents, George 
M. and Martha Brown. Later her parents moved to Crawfordsville, where 
her father spent his last days. His mother still lives in North Salem. 

George B. Davis was given a common school and high school education 
in his home town and then attended Butler College for four years, after 
which he graduated from the State l'ni\'ersity at Bloomington in the spring 
of 1894. He received the degree of Bachelor of Arts from Butler College, 
and the degree of Bachelor of Laws from Indiana University. Before he 
had finished his course at Bloomington, he had become part owner of the. 
North Salem Bank and to this financial institution he has devoted his time 
ever since leaving college. 

The North Salem Bank was organized in 1891 l)y Pritchard & Son 
of Illinois. In 1893 they sold it to C. W. Davis, G. B. Davis and Samuel 
R. Stewart. Soon after this, Mr. Stewart sold his interests to J. B. Fleece 
and the bank is now owned by C. W. Davis, G. B. Davis and Samuel R. 
Stewart. The deposits now average one hundred and fifty thousand dollars, 
and it is considered one of the strongest and safest private banks in central 
Indiana. It is well managed and is an institution which has won the confidence 
of the people of North Salem and vicinity, because all of the owners are up- 
right men of excellent education. 

Mr. Davis was married in December, 1897, to Lulu C. Duncan, the 
daughter of George H. and Nancy (Davis) Duncan. She was born and 
reared in Eel River township, this county, near North Salem, and received 



764 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

her education in the North Salem schools. Her parents were both born and 
reared in this county and have spent their whole life here. Mr. and Mrs. 
Davis have three children: Rollin. aged eleven; Mildred, aged nine, and Mary 
Eunice, aged six. The family are members of the Christian church and Mr. 
Davis is president of the board and treasurer of the church. Mr. Davis is a 
man of unassuming demeanor in his relations to his fellow men, among whom 
he enjoys a well deserved popularity, and has, without reserve, always been 
for the best things in life for the community honored by his residence and here 
his name has become known for his sterling: character and worth. 



GRANDISON EATON. 

If for no other reason, the life history of Grandison Eaton, well-known 
citizen of Brownsburg, Hendricks county, Indiana, should be contained in this 
work because he is one of the honored veterans of the great War of the Re- 
bellion, who unhesitatingly gave up the pleasure of home associations and 
the opportunities of business and offered his services and his life, if need be, 
in order that the nation might be perpetuated and the Star and Stripes saved 
from treason and hishonor; but there are other reasons, one of which is 
that he has led a life of honesty and sobriety and another is that he has done 
much for the general good of his community here. 

Grandison Eaton, a distinguished veteran of the Civil War and public- 
spirited citizen of Brownsburg, was born in Elendricks county, September 
13, 1837, and has spent his whole life within the county. His parents were 
Greenup and Mahala (Turpin) Eaton. Greenup Eaton was born in 1813 in 
Bourbon county, Kentucky, and came to this county in childhood with his 
parents, his father dying soon after their arrival in this county. Mahala Tur- 
pin was born in Scott county. Kentucky, in 181 5, and reared to young woman- 
hood near Clermont, in Marion county, this state. She was the daughter of 
Jacob and Martha Turpin, who came from Kentucky among the early pioneers. 
Jacob Turpin was born in 1785 in the eastern part of Maryland and was a son 
of William and Nancy (Hanley) Turpin. William Turpin's father was a sol- 
dier of the Revolution and lived to the advanced age of over one hundred 
years. In 1786 William and Nancy Turpin left Maryland and went to Ken- 
tucky, and for the first few years were compelled to live in a block house 
with the other settlers of the community for safety, as at that time the 
Indians were on the war path and practically all of the settlers of Kentucky 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 765 

were gathered in the block houses scattered throughout the state. Jacob Tur- 
pin married Martha Taylor in Bourbon county, Kentucky, in 1804. Martha 
Taylor was born in 1786, of Scotch ancestry. Jacob Turpin and his wife 
moved to Scott county, Kentucky, and m 1820 came to Indianapolis when 
it had not even yet reached the dignity of a village. In 1829 Jacob Turpin 
and his wife moved to the eastern part of Hendricks county, near Clermont. 
At that time there were no bridges nor roads and the farm on which they 
settled was a virgin wilderness in every respect. Jacob Turpin started in 
to clear the ground and make a home. He died in 1849 and she in 1855. 

Greenup Eaton, the father of Grandison, whose history is here pre- 
sented, came from Marion county. Indiana, to Hendricks county while still 
a boy and hired out to the farmers in this county to work by the day. He 
married Mahala Turpin, and to them were born four children, James Samuel, 
William Harrison, Grandison and Ruann. When Grandison was about three 
years of age his mother died, and his father afterwards married Melmda 
Smith and^to this second marriage five children were born, Reuben, Thomas, 
Willard F., Fannie and ^lahala J. The mother of these children died after 
:\Iahala was born, the latter being then reared by Moses Gwinn. Some tmie 
after the death of his second wife, Greenup Eaton married Cynthia Watson, 
and to his third marriage were born seven children: Marcelite, the wife of 
Joseph Jones; Luna, the wife of Oliver Parsons; Estella, who married Will- 
iam Elhs; Henry, who was at oue time sheriff of Hendricks county, and 
Charles and Allen, both of whom died in infancy. 

(ireenup Eaton made his home two miles north of Brownsburg, where 
he operated a brick vard and also followed the trade of a bricklayer. He 
was one of the first men to place brick on the ground for the erection of the 
present insane asvlum at Indianapolis. He and two other brick men ran a 
race to see which one would be the first to get a load of brick on the ground 
and he was the winner. He was a man who was intensely devoted to his 
country and had a deep-seated hatred of slavery. When the Knights of the 
Golden Circle began their nefarious operations in Indiana, he waged inces- 
sant war against them, and did everything that he could to break up their 
organization in his county. Four of his sons, William Harrison, Grandison, 
Reuben and Thomas, went to the front and all of them made valiant soldier? 
for the Union. He died in 1866, a man universally honored and respected. 

Grandison Eaton, the son of Greenup Eaton by his first marriage, grew 
up on the home farm and in September, 1861, enlisted m Company B, 
Seventh Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry. A large number of Hen- 
dricks countv bovs were in this same regiment, among whom was Judge 



766 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

John V. Hadley, editor of the historical section of this volume. Mr. 
Eaton was at the front nearly four years and served in many of the most im- 
portant battles of the Civil War, among which were the battles of Gettys- 
burg, Antietam, Spotsylvania, Chancellorsville, second battle of Bull Run and 
many others of minor importance. After being mustered out, he returned 
to this county and resumed his trade of brick-making and brick-laying. This 
has been his life work until a few years ago when he retired from manual 
labor. He has built a majority of the brick structures in and around Browns- 
burg, his first experience being before the Civil War opened during the 
Lincoln campaign, when he laid the brick in the building which is now 
occupied Ijy the Hunter Bank of Brownsburg. Mr. Eaton has prospered 
because of his industry and good business abilities and now owns the post- 
office building, the tvvo buildings across the street from the postoffice, the 
second building east of the postofiice, the property occupied by the telephone 
exchange and residence properties in the town. As a contractor he has al- 
ways rendered good service and his buildings will remain for many years to 
come as monuments to his honest labor. 

Mr. Eaton was married January 8, 1865, to Mary S. Lawler, who was 
born in 1841, near Clayton, this county. Her parents v;ere Nicholas and 
Ann (Buchanan) Lawler, natives of Kentucky, who came to Jennings county, 
Indiana, and from thence to this county in an early day. Nicholas Lawler 
was a life-long farmer. 

Politically, Mr. Eaton has been a life-long Republican, and has always 
kept abreast of the times in political matters, although he has never been a 
candidate for any public ofiice. He is a great reader of all kinds of litera- 
ture and has alwavs been deeply interested in the local history of his county. 
He is a loyal member of the Grand Army of the Republic, which was es- 
tablished in 1866 at Decatur, Illinois, and takes a prominent part in all the 
Memorial day services in his county. It is interesting to note in this connec- 
tion that the Grand Army of the Republic reached its highest membership 
of four hundred thousand four hundred eighty.-nine in 1890, and that today 
it has been reduced by death to less than one hundred and seventy-five 
thousand. The Grand Army of the Republic has held a national encamp- 
ment every year since 1866 excepting 1867, and has gathered in nearly every 
important city in the United States. It was the originator of May 30th as 
Memorial day, the first Memorial day being celebrated in the year 1868. Mr. 
Eaton is a public-spirited man who has been a prominent factor in the busi- 
ness life of Brownsburg. He is a sociable man, highly esteemed and one 
of those whole-souled, genial men whom every one likes to meet. 



\ 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 76/ 

CLARK H. SELLARS. 

Self-assertion is believed by many people to be absolutely necessary to 
success in life, and there are good reasons for the entertainment of such be- 
lief. The modest man \'ery rarely gets what is due him. The selfish, ag- 
gressive man elbows his way to the front, takes all that is in sight and it 
sometimes seems that modesty is a sin, with self-denial the penalty. There 
are, however, exceptions to all rules, and it is a matter greatly to be re- 
gretted that the exceptions to the conditions are not more numerous. One 
notable exception is the case of the honorable gentleman whose life history 
we here present, who possesses just a sufficient amount of modesty to be a 
gentleman at all times, and yet sufficient persistency to win in the business 
world and at the same time not appear overbold. As a result of these well 
and happily blended qualities, Air. Sellars has won a host of friends in Guil- 
ford township, Hendricks county, where he is well known to all classes 
as a man of influence, integrity and business ability. 

Clark H. Sellars, one of the prominent farmers and stock raisers of 
Guilford township, this county, was born October 26, 1869, in the township 
where he has always resided. His parents were John and Adaline (Coble) 
Sellars. His father was one of the leading ministers of the Friends church 
and preached at Mooresville for the most of his life. The grandparents on 
both sides came from North Carolina, and originally from Germany. John 
Sellars was married twice and to his first marriage was born seven children. 
His first wife died in March, 1896. and a few years later he married Rebecca 
Doan. The seven children of the first marriage are as follows : Albert H., 
deceased, who married Ida Hight ; William, of LaMar, Missouri, who mar- 
ried Rosa Fogleman and has five children living and two deceased ; Dossie, 
of Morgan county, the wife of W. O. Latta, a farmer, who has six children 
living and two deceased; Charles, of Indianapolis, who married Violet 
Moore ; Clark H., of whom we are writing ; R. D., a farmer of Morgan county, 
who married Sallie Sumner and has three children living and one deceased ; 
Addison, a merchant of Mooresville, who married Maud Scruggs and has two 
children. Mrs. John Sellars died in 1896 and her husband five years later, 
having lived on the same farm in Guilford township for thirty-one years 
previous to his death. 

Clark H. Sellars was married August 23, 1893, to Flora C. Thompson, 
the daughter of John S. and Martha E. (Latta) Thompson. John S. 
Thompson was a farmer of Morgan county and a veteran of the late Civil 



768 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

War. dying in 1907. Mr. and Airs. Clark H. Sellars are the parents of tive 
cliildrcn: Pearl Alarie. born February 7, 1894, who, after graduating from 
the Mooresville high school, began teaching school and has continued at 
that profession up to the present time; Claire J., born January zj, 1896, 
who is a graduate of the Mooresville high school and the Indiana State 
Normal School at Terre Haute; Dorrett Laurene. born January 29, 1899, 
a graduate of the Mooresville high school; Grace Hildren, born January 19, 
1901 ; Paul Lee, born January 13, 1904. 

Mr. Sellars and the members of his family are adherents of the Friends 
church and are generous supporters of all of the organizations of their 
church. Mr. Sellars has allied himself to the new Progressive party, because 
he feels that in the principles advocated by this party the welfare of the nation 
will be the best served. Fraternally, hfe is a member of the Knights of Pythias. 
Air. and Mrs. Sellars have reared a very interesting family, and have had 
the pleasure of seeing their children rise to lives of honor ana usefulness. 
Ther have given them the advantages of the best educational institutions in 
the state, and they have responded by doing tlieir part in a very satisfactory 
manner. Mr. Sellars is one of the most substantial men of the county, and 
has helped very materially in the advancement of his community, gi\ing his 
support to all worth}^ enterprises and measures. 



MARION BAILEY. 



An enumeration of those men of the present generation who have won 
honor and public recognition for themselves in Hendricks county, and at the 
same time have honored the locality to which they belong, would be incom- 
plete were there failure to make specific mention of Marion Bailey, of Union 
township. The qualities which have made him one of the prominent and 
successful men of Hendricks county have also brought him the esteem of his 
fellow men, for his career has been one of well directed energy, strong de- 
termination and honorable methods. Yet he has not neglected to take his 
part in the public life of his community. 

Marion Bailey, the president of the Lizton Bank and vice-president of 
the Citizens State Bank at Jamestown, was born December i, 1854, near 
St. Paul. His parents were John and Catherine (Emdy) Bailey. John Bai- 
ley was born in Butler county, Ohio, September 19, 1827, and came with his 
parents to Shelby county, Indiana, when a small boy. In 1861 John Bailey 
with his family, moved to this county and settled in L^nion township near 




MR. AND MRS. MARION BAILEY 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 769 

Lizton, where he followed the life of a farmer and stock raiser until his death 
in 1902. The wife of John Bailey was a native of Shelby county, Indiana, 
and died in 1855, when Marion was only one year of age. John Bailey was 
the father of fourteen children: Mrs. Elizabeth Smith; Sarah, who died at 
the age of two ; Mrs. Eva A. Campbell, and Marion, whose history is herein 
delineated, are the children of his first wife, Catherine Emdy. Mrs. Mary 
E. Dale ; George W. ; Peter N. ; Mrs. Ellen Hall ; Mrs. Nettie Hedge ; Mrs. 
Nora E. Lee; Edgar; William, w^ho died at the age of three; John T., and 
one child which died in infancy, are children by his second marriage, to Re- 
becca J. Reed. 

Marion Bailey was given a good education in the schools of Lizton and 
Jamestown and assisted his father on the farm until his marriage, at the age 
of twenty-three. He was married November 15, 1877, to Rachel C. Young, 
the daughter of Milton and Susan Young, and to this union have been born 
five children. The first died in early infancy: Harry E., who married Dora 
Brown; Harry is a farmer living near Lizton and has two children, Buford 
E. and Veletia ; Artie M., a farmer of Boone county, who married Nora 
Coombs and has two children, Kenneth and Earl ; Luna A., the wife of Stew- 
art Pritchett. a farmer of Boone county, has two children, Thelma and 
Lorin; Goldie Vesper, a farmer of this township who married Ruth Keeney 
and has one child, Ranold Marion. 

Immediately after his marriage, Mr. Bailey began farming in Union 
township and has been a successful farmer from the beginning and now owns 
three hundred and eighty-seven and a half acres in this county and Boone 
county. In 1903 he made his first venture in the banking business and upon 
the organization of the Citizens Bank at Jamestown, in Boone county, he be- 
came vice-president and has continued in that capacity up to the present 
time. Pre-eminent among his many good equalities is that of sound financial 
judgment and an ability to grasp facts and infer their practical significance 
with almost unerring certainty. After once engaging in the banking busi- 
ness he became interested in it and began to make a study of practical bank- 
ing. In 19 10 he helped to organize the Lizton Bank and has been president 
of that financial institution ever since its organization. Both of the banks 
with which he is connected are in a flourishing condition and have gained the 
confidence of the community which they sefve. 

However, Mr. Bailey's life has not always been devoted to business, for 
he has taken a prominent part in the public affairs of his community and 
state and for the past thirty years has been one of the prominent figures in 
(49) 



7/0 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Democratic politics in his county and for the last ten years a conspicuous 
figure in state politics. His first official position was trustee of his township, 
an office which he held from 1888 to 1895 ; he then served as a member of the 
county advisory board, getting his appointment through the governor, then 
served three years on the state board of charities and correction, this board 
being composed of three citizens of the state selected by the governor. Mr. 
Bailey's first entry into state politics was in 1906. when he was nominated 
by the Democratic state convention for state auditor, and, although the whole 
Republican ticket was elected in that year, he was defeated by only thirty- 
two votes. In 1908 the Democratic state convention recognized in him a man 
of great ability and a man who would make an effective appeal to the voters 
of the state, and they again placed him before the Democrats of the state on 
the ticket for state auditor. Again, however, the fortunes of politics were 
against him and this time he was defeated by a vote of only one hundred and 
twenty-eight out of a total of nearly six hundred and fifty thousand votes. 
It will be seen from what has been said of Mr. Bailey that he is a man of 
marked ability along many lines. As a political leader his convictions of right 
and wrong have been sharply separated and he has always taken a positive 
stand for clean politics and better political conditions generally. He has 
always heartily endorsed the maxim that he serves his party best who serves 
his country best, and upon all questions involving the material, moral and 
educational interests of society he has always endeavored to ascertain the 
right involved, with a view of acting in conformitv therewith. 

Mr. Bailey is a member of the Knights of Pythias, Improved Order of 
Red Men and Pythian Sisters at Lizton; the Free and Accepted Masons at 
Jamestown and the Royal Arch Masons at Danville. He is also a member of 
the Indiana Democratic Club, Indianapolis. Mr. Bailey has a reputation as a 
hard worker and a man of good judgment and honest principles. He is a 
self-made man and one who has in every respect merited the high esteem in 
which he has been universally held. He has been recognized as a man of 
public spirit, intellectual attainment and exemplary character. 



MILLARD TYRA HUNTER. 

No citizen is better or more favorably known in Hendricks countv to- 
day than Millard Tyra Hunter, the president of the Hunter Bank, of Browns- 
burg. He has witnessed the wonderful development of this locality and 
played no inconspicuous role in the growth of the same, for he has had its in- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 7/1 

terest at heart and was ever ready to do his full share in the work of progress. 
As a farmer he was one of the most successful in the county, and as a mer- 
chant he was no less successful, while as a banker he has shown those busi- 
ness qualities which mark him as a man of more than ordinary ability. 

Millard Tyra Hunter, a banker of Brownsburg, was born April 14, 
185 1, in Middle township, this county. His parents were Lewis S. and Eliza- 
beth A. (Parker) Hunter. Lewis S. Hunter was born in 1813 in Fleming 
county, Kentucky. His father died when he was only three months old and 
when he became of age his mother came from Kentucky and settled in Middle 
township. There Lewis Hunter married and afterwards lived the life of a 
farmer until 1852. when he came to Brownsburg and engaged in the general 
mercantile business, in which he continued until the opening of the Civil War, 
when he sold out and resumed farming. He owned a farm one mile east of 
Brownsburg, but lived in the town. Lewis S. Hunter was an active Repub- 
lican and in the early days was appointed county tax collector. He, with his 
wife, were members of the Christian church and he was a man who was highly 
respected by his neighbors. He died in January, 1892, and his widow sur- 
vived him five years. 

Millard Tyra Huunter recei^'ed his education in the Brownsburg schools 
and after his graduation from the high school attended Butler College. 
After leaving college he returned to the farm and later clerked for Cope & 
Hunt in their store in Brownsburg. After his marriage Mr. Hunter went 
to farming for himself east of Brownsburg and remained on the farm about 
twelve years. He then moved into Brownsburg and engaged in the dry goods 
business, although he still managed his farm, and has never entirely relin- 
quished his agricultural interests. He continued in the dry goods business 
until 1907, when he discontinued this line of endeavor and opened the Hun- 
ter Bank at Brownsburg, of which he has been president since its organization. 
This bank has had a remarkably successful career since the date of its or- 
ganization, and the following statement, which was issued at the close of its 
business on October 21, 1913, shows the remarkable progress which it has 
made in seven years: Resources — Loans and discounts, $160,422.87; over- 
drafts, $530.81 ; furniture and fixtures, $1,400.00; due from banks and trust 
companies, $47,478.93; cash on hand. $4,484.08; cash items, $1,276.35; cur- 
rent expenses, $2,082.00; total, $217,675.04. Liabilities — Capital stock paid 
in, $10,000.00; surplus, $2,500.00; demand deposits. $159,121.34; demand 
certificates, $42,053.00; exchange, discounts, etc., $4,000.00; total, $217.- 
675.04. 

The bank seeks to serve the town of Brownsburg and vicinitv and is 



772 HENDRICKS COUNTY^ INDIANA, 

doing an ever-increasing- business, which is a tril)nte to the business abihty of 
Mr. Hunter and the confidence which the people of the community have in 
him. 

Mr. Hunter was married in the fall of 1879 to Mary Larsh, who was 
born in Clermont, Indiana, and came to Brownsburg when she was about 
twelve' years of age with her parents. Air. Hunter is a Republican in politics 
and has served as trustee of Lincoln township, although he is not active in 
politics at the present time. He and his wife are loyal members of the Christ- 
ian church of Brownsburg, and give it their zealous support. Mr. Hunter is a 
man who has shown rare business (lualities. and in all of his tinancial deal- 
ings he has so conducted himself .that he has won the hearty approbation of 
his fellow men. He is a worthy scion of one of the old and influential 
pioneer families of this locality, and has kept untarnished the good name which 
his ancestors ever bore unsullied. 



CLEO L. BIUNT. 



It cannot be other than interesting to note in the series of personal 
sketches appearing in this work the varying conditions that have compassed 
those whose careers are outlined, and the effort has been made in each case 
to throw well focused light onto the individuality and to bring into proper 
perspective the scheme of each respective career. Each man who strives to 
fulfill his part in connection with human life and human activities is de- 
serving of recognition, whatever may be his field of endeavor, and it is the 
function of works of this nature to perpetuate for future generations an 
authentic record concerning those represented in its pages, and the value of 
such puljlications is certain to be cumulati\'e for all time to come, showing 
forth the individual and specific accomplishments of which generic history 
is ever engendered. 

Cleo L. Hunt, the cashier of the Hunter Bank of Brownsburg, was born 
in Brownsburg, April 15, 1880. His parents were Cyrus N. and Julia A. 
(Hunter) Hunt. Cyrus N. Hunt, the son of Cyrus Hunt, Sr., was born at 
Belleville, this county, and was a merchant in Brownsburg from about 1867 
until his death in January, 1891. He was a member of the Christian church, 
and was prominent in local public afifairs of his community. Cleo L. Hunt 
was the only child of Mr. and Mrs. Cyrus Hunt. 

Cleo L. Hunt was first educated in the common schools, and graduated 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. JJly 

from Shortridge high school at IndianapoHs in 1899, after which he entered 
Bntler College and graduated from that institution in 1904. While in col- 
lege he took a prominent part in college activities and was a member of the 
Greek-letter fraternity of Phi Delta Theta. After graduating from college 
he returned to Brownsburg, and when the Hunter Bank was organized in 
1907 he was elected cashier and has continued in that capacity until the pres- 
ent time. He has shown ability to grasp financial matters in a comprehensive 
manner and his usefulness to the bank is increasing year by vear. 

Mr. Hunt was married in 190S to Lura Harold, the daughter of Dr. Cvrus 
N. and Ella (Spencer) Harold, of Indianapolis. Doctor Harold is a practicing 
physician in Indianapolis, and was born near Carmel, Indiana, his wife being a 
native of Henry county, this state. Mr. and Mrs Hunt are both devout church 
members, he belonging to the Christian church, while she holds her member- 
ship in the Friends church. Mr. Hunt is a man of strong intelligence and good 
judgment and with the qualities of business management which he has de- 
veloped he will become increasingly useful to society as he grows older. He 
is a man of pleasing personality who easil}' makes friends, and because of his 
splendid qualities of head and heart his friends are as numerous as his ac- 
quaintances. 



JAMES NELSON LOCKHART. 

In the removal of James N. Lockhart from this mundane sphere on the 
last day of 19 12, there was removed another of those prominent farmers 
of this county who have made their way in life by force of their own merit 
and industry from small beginnings to great success and his memory will 
long be revered and his influence felt for good in this section of our common- 
wealth. He was of a turn to win the confidence and good will of those with 
whom he came into contact, and to retain their esteem and friendship with- 
out effort. He was a man of absolute honesty, always on the advance and 
managed his agricultural interests with a skill and prudence which came 
of a practical knowledge of every branch of the business. 

James Nelson Lockhart was born near Martinsville, in Morgan county, 
this state, in 1848, and died at his home in Eel River township, this county, 
December 31, 1912. He was the son of Jarman and Leah (Robbins) Lock- 
hart, and a brother of Jacob Lockhart, whose history is found elsewhere 
in this volume and contains the ancestry of the Lockhart family. John 
Lockhart died when James was a small boy and the widow and her four 



774 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 



children moved from Morgan county to Marion township, in this county, 
on her father's farm. Here James grew to manhood and as soon as he was 
old enough to do a day's work he started to work for his uncle, William 
Robbins. for whom he worked several years, saved his money and rented a 
farm, to which he took his mother and some of his brothers and sisters. 

James M. Lockhart was naturally a man of keen discernment and good 
business (|ualities, and saved his money with the intention of investing 
in land. In 1888 he bought a farm, but four years later sold it and bought 
one hundred and eighty-four acres one mile south of North Salem. This 
farm he improved and brought to a state where it is the equal of any in the 
countv in productivity. He is an excellent and capable farmer, because he 
reallv loves his occupation, and for this reason has been able to live a con- 
tented and at the same time successful life. 

Mr. Lockhart was married in February, 1895, to Mrs. Anna (Rook) 
Weaklev, who was born at Phillipsburg, Pennsylvania, the daughter of 
Amos D. and Margery (Currey) Rook. Her parents came to Hendricks 
counts' after the close of the Civil War. and after a temporary stop in i^ut- 
nam county, near Roachdale, this state, they permanently located in this 
county near Montclair. The Rook family moved to Kansas some years after 
they came to this county, where they lived for a short time, and while in that 
state, in 1884, Anna Rook married Thomas Weakley. Mrs. Rook died in 
1870 and Mr. Rook survived her many years, his death occurring in 19 12. 
Thomas Weakley, the first husband of Mrs. Lockhart, was born near Pitts- 
boro, this county, and was a son of Perry and Arthusa (Smith) Weakley. 
W^hen he was nine years of age his parents mo\'ed to LaBette county, Kan- 
sas, when there were only twenty-six white settlers in that county. In 1888, 
five years after he and Anna Rook were married, he came back to this county 
and died a year later, lea\ing his widow and two sons, Claude and Paul. 
Claude married Pearl Baggs, of Edelstein. Illinois, and lives on the old 
Lockhart farm one mile south of North Salem. Paul is living with his 
mother in North Salem at the present time. To Mr. and Mrs. Lockhart was 
born a daugliter. Bertha Clare, who was born near North Salem, and who 
remains at home and is attending school. 

After Mr. Lockhart was married in 1891, they lived on a farm near 
Montclair until 1903. when they moved to a farm one mile south of North 
Salem, which he had previously purchased. In 1907 Mr. Lockhart purchased 
a home in North Salem, where he lived until his death. Mr. Lockhart was a 
life-long Republican, althought he never aspired to any office at the hands 
of his party. He and his wife were both members of the Christian church 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 775 

and .ave it their earnest and consistent support. At tlie time of his death 
Mr lockhart owned one hundred and eighty-four acres of land and three 

''"^'^^tl^^^os. one of its best citizens when Mr. Lockhart passed 
awav He was a man of essentially domestic tastes and was usua ly to be 
tound at hon,e with h.s family. He was a man who was honest and upr.gh 

n all of his dealings and one who was highly respected by all w.th whom he 
am into contact He was a man of modest and nnassum.ng demeanor 

a rtne tvpe of the reliable, self-made American, a friend to the poor, and a 

man who united with his neighbors in every good work. 



HON. SAMUEL H. ELROD. 

True biography has a more noble purpose than mere fulsome eulogy 
The historic spirit, faithful to the record ; the discerning judgn,ent, uttmoved 
by prejudice and uncolored by enthusiasn,, are as essemml m g.vmg the e 
of the individual as in writing the history of a people Indeed, the mgenu- 
ousness of the fornter picture is even more vital, because the tnd.vdual .s th 
national un.t, and it the unit be justly estimated ^^ ^'^^^^^y^^^ZJ^ 
become correspondingly intelligible. The world today .s what .ts leadntg 
men have made it. This is especially true of those whose tnfluence has passed 
beyond the confines of locality and permeated the larger life of a state. 

Indiana has been the birthplace and early home of many men who have 
..ained honor and distinction ,n the newer states of our great West. Of this 
mimber. notable mention is due Hon. Samuel H. Elrod former governor o 
South Dakota, recognized today as one of the strong and noble characters of 
that oreat commonwealth. A man of superior ability and great usefulness, a 
citizen representative of the utmost loyalty to every obligation ot citizenship, 
he has given much to aid and sustain the civic and material prosperity of his 
adopted state, and his name is enshrined in the hearts of the people of South 
Dakota as one who has always given of his best, 

Samuel H. Elrod was born in Clay township. Hendricks county, Indiana 
May I, 1856. a son of Jesse F. and Lydia (Pursel) Elrod. Jesse F. Elroc^ 
was born in Stokes countv. North Carolina, from which county came many of 
the early settlers of Hendricks county, Indiana, and about 183b he came to 
Indiana; settling in Clay township, this county, Lydia Pursel was a native ot 



776 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

jMarioii countv. Indiana, liorn on Fall creek, now almost within the limits 
of Indianapolis. Both parents are now deceased. 

Samuel H. Elrod was born on the farm, his father being a pioneer 
farmer. j\s a boy he was inured to hard work and had little opportunities 
for accjuiring an education. At the age of twenty, however, he entered 
DePauw Uni\-ersity at Greencastle, and "worked his way"' through the uni- 
versity course, earning the necessary money by doing janitor and other work. 
He also studied law while at DePauw. He graduated from the university in 
1882, and went to South Dakota the same vear. He went to Clark, that state, 
on a construction train, to make his home there when there was not a dwelling 
on the town site. He w-as admitted to practice law^ in South Dakota by Judge 
Kidder, one of the pioneer jurists of the state, at Watertown in 1882. He 
did a large land and law business from the outset. 

Taking an acti\'e interest in politics, Mr. Elrod was not long in attaining 
a prominent place in the councils of his party, and his fine abilities soon won 
notable recognition from the body politic. He was a member of the first 
South Dakota constitutional convention, and has served five terms as state's 
attorney for Clark county. He also held the office of county judge for one 
term during territorial days. In 1898 he was a candidate at the Republican 
state convention at Mitchell for the nomination for Congress, but was de- 
feated. In 1904 he was nominated by the Republican party for governor of 
South Dakota, and he was triumphantly elected at the ensuing election. Dur- 
ing this campaign he won the sobriquet, "Honest Sam," an endearing title by 
which he is now known all over the state, and the public prints often speak of 
him as the "Abe Lincoln of South Dakota." 

As chief executive, Governor Elrod measured up to the stature of any 
predecessor in all that concerned purity and strength of administration. There 
was never a period in his illustrious career when his mental equipment was 
not recognized by friend and foe alike as of a superior order. None ever 
failed to credit him with high moral purpose, true nobility of character, ster- 
ling sense of justice, able and comprehensive statesmanship and firm adher- 
ence to the loftiest of political, social and business ideals. The almost unani- 
mous concession to his worth disarmed the temporary determination due to 
partisan exigency, for there was none who could debauch his integrity or 
swerve his independence. His judginents found respect without reference to 
party predilections. Reared as a farmer boy, it was but natural that his sym- 
pathies should be with the agricultural interests of his state, and no executive 
perhaps did more for the farmers of South Dakota than Governor Elrod. 
The Dakota Farmer pays this splendid tribute to him : 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 'J'J'J 

"From the moment Governor S. H. Elrod was sworn in as the chief 
executive of South Dakota, in season and out of season, he has stood by every 
measure that would possibly benefit the agriculturists of his state. Before in 
these columns we have enumerated not less than half a dozen distinctively 
agricultural and live stock measures tliat had his constant support during the 
last session of the Legislature, a number of which, we believe, could never 
have become laws without it, and now we must record one more, and in our 
estimation, among his crowning achievements in this line. We refer to the 
securing of what was known as the 'Fishback quarter' of one hundred and 
sixty acres of splendid land for the agricultural college and experiment station 
at Brookings. This splendid piece of land, as many know, was literally located 
in the very heart of the farm school grounds. It came up to the very doors 
of the college buildings on two sides, and was not only in everv way perfectlv 
adapted to the work and needs of the school, but was fast advancing in price 
and being clamored for by many far-sighted investors to be laid out in build- 
ing lots. Aluch more than the price given could have been had for it for this 
purpose. The troubles relating to getting title to this land are too complicated 
to explain. It is enough to say that repeatedly, during the long-drawn-out 
time, this title was in jeopardy, the timely and personal interference of the 
governor saved it from going from the state forever." 

Go\'ernor Elrod did not disappoint any intelligent opinion of his excep- 
tional qualities of head and heart by retirement from public life, but, on the 
contrary, has continued to add to acquired esteem by a constant displav of 
ability and usefulness which is continually recognized and appreciated. He 
returned to the practice of his profession, and is now actively engaged therein 
at Clark, South Dakota. In the practice of law he has achieved an enviable 
reputation. Years of conscientious work have brought with them not only 
increase of patronage, but also that growth in legal knowledge and that wise 
and accurate judgment the possession of which constitutes marked excellence 
in the profession. 

Samuel H. Elrod is a plain man. a man of that plain and noble class that 
constitutes the creative capacity and the true manliness and worth of a com- 
munity. He loves South Dakota, and is very optimistic regarding the future 
of his adopted state. In his little home city of Clark he is peculiarly active in 
every movement having for its object the moral and material betterment of 
the community, and here it is that he is revered with a sentiment akin to 
idolatry. He has been a member of the IMethodist Episcopal church for many 
years, and is a member of the official board of this denomination at Clark. 
He has never used liquor or tobacco in any form. 



778 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Air. Elrod married Mary Ellen Masten, who also was a native of Hen- 
dricks county.. Indiana, being born near Coatesville. They have two children. 
Barbara and Arthur, the latter named for ex-Governor Arthur C. Mellette, 
who was always a warm friend and patron of Mr. Elrod. 



ELi: \Z AR B.CARTER. 



Fealt}^ to facts in the analvzation of the character of a citizen of the 
type of Eleazar B. Carter is all that is required to make a biographical sketch 
interesting to those who have at heart the good name of the community, be- 
cause it is the honorable reputation of the man of standing and affairs, more 
than any other consideration, that gives character and stability to the body 
politic and makes the true glory of a city or state revered at home and re- 
spected abroad. In the broad light which things of good repute ever invite. 
the name and character of Mr. Carter stand revealed and secure and, though 
of modest demeanor, with no ambition to distinguish himself in public posi- 
tion or as a leader of men, his career has been signally honorable and it may 
be studied with profit by the youth entering upon his life work. 

Eleazar B. Carter, one amongst the oldest farmers of the county, was 
born fifth month 30, 1844, in the county where he has spent his entire life. 
His parents were Samuel and Susanna (Bales) Carter, his father being a 
native of North Carolina, his birth having occurred ninth month 26, 181 7, 
while his mother was a native of this county, born second month 18, 1822. 
Samuel Carter came to this state from Carolina when he was a lad of six 
years, his parents locating on a farm south of Plainfield. On his farm, which 
his father entered from the government, Samuel Carter was reared and re- 
ceived his meager education in the subscription schools of that period. Upon 
his marriage, tenth month 22, 1840, he moved to Liberty township on a 
farm of eighty acres which has father gave him and remained there until his 
death, which occurred twelfth month 15, 1876. his wife surviving him sev- 
eral years, her death occurring on fourth month 4, 1885. Samuel Carter 
married Susanna Bales, the daughter of Eleazar and Ann (Millikan) Bale§ 
on tenth month 22, 1840, and to this union there were born nine children: 
Ira, born second month 7^ 1842, died seventh month 15, 1864; Eleazar B., 
born fifth month 30, 1844; Asenath, born eleventh month 7, 1845, "^^'^o mar- 
ried Cuthbert Osborn ; Jonathan, born seventh-month 8. 1848, who first mar- 
ried Svbil Osborne, and after her death, Levina Coffin, and for his third wife, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 779 

he married Sidney Sacre ; Evan, born first month 29, 1851, who married 
Sarah J. Weasner; Alvin, born seventh month 13, 1854, died eleventh month 
5, 1862; Nathan S.. born ninth month 22, 1857, married Martha Hodson; 
Dayton H., born eighth month 19, 1861, died fifth month 31, 1906; Elva, 
born first month 14, 1866, married Louis Stokes. 

Eleazar B. Carter received the best education which was accorded by the 
old-fashioned subscription schools of his day, and at an early age began to 
help his father on the home farm. He remained on the home farm until his 
marriage, which occurred ninth month 18, 1869, and then rented a farm for 
the first five years of his married life. At the end of that time he had saxed 
enough money to buy the farm on which he is now living. As a farmer he is 
wide-awake and thoroughly up-to-date in all the latest improved methods of 
agriculture. He keeps himself well informed on the best ideas pertaining to 
scientific farming and is recognized as a farmer of more than ordinary ability. 
He divides his attention judiciously JDetw^een grain and stock raising and has 
been uniformly successful as a stock breeder and raiser. 

Mr. Carter was married ninth month 18, 1869, to Mary Ellen Nichols, 
the daughter of Erasmus and Elizabeth (^Stanlev) Nichols, and to this union 
there has been born one child, Luella, who married William B. Newdin. Mrs. 
Carter's parents were old settlers jn Hendricks county, her father, Erasmus 
Nichols, being born in Pennsylvania, but came to Nelson count}', Kentucky, 
when he was about three years of age with his parents, where he remained 
until 1 82 1, when his parents removed to Indiana and located in Hendricks 
county. As a young man Erasmus helped to clear the ground which is now 
occupied b}- the county court house at Danville. He was married ninth 
month 8, 1825. to Elizabeth Stanley, whose birth occurred in Virginia, but 
who emigrated to this state with her parents Avhen a small child. To Mr. 
and Mrs. Erasmus Nichols v.-ere born fourteen children : Thomas, born fifth 
month 26, 1826, who married Jane Brown, deceased first month 7, 1863; 
Eliza, born first month 17, 1828, married Israel Brown and her death oc- 
curred first month 10, 1877; Rachel, born eleventh month 14, 1829, died 
eighth month r6, 1831 ; Matilda, born tenth month 16, 1831, married Samuel 
Hastings, and her death occurred on seventh month 19, 1906; William, born 
seventh month 3, 1834, married, first, Luzenia Newman, and after her death. 
Emilv Johnson; Jane, born first month 22. 1836, married John Stewart, and 
her death occurred eighth month 6, 1907; Martha, born tenth month 24. 1837, 
married Jared Stewart, and she died in 1909; Sarah, born tenth month 22. 
1839, died fifth month 10, 1842; Nathan, born twelfth month 4, 1841, died 



780 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ninth month 11. 1843; Li^i^^i^da, bcM'n second month 6, 1844, died eleventh 
month I, 1846; James, born third month g. 1846, married Rachel Nichols; 
i\Iatthew. born fourth month 4, 1848, died sixth month 5, 1872; Susannah, 
born second month 19, 1850, died seventh month 26, 1851, and Mary E.. born 
second month 6, 1852, married Eleazar B. Carter. Samuel Carter was born 
ninth month 26, 1817, and died on twelfth month 15, 1876. His wife was 
born second month 19, 1822, and died fourth month 4, 1885. 

Eleazar B. Carter has been a Republican since reaching his majority 
and has nex'er seen any valid reason why he should leave his party for that of 
any other. He remained true to the old party in 19 12, when thousands saw 
fit to change their allegiance to the new Progressive party. In his church 
relations he has been a life-long member of the Friends church. He is finan- 
cially interested in the First National Bank, of Amo, and is now a director in 
that institution. Mr. Carter has lived a simple, honest and unostentatious 
life, doing good wherever he could, speaking kindly of his neighbors, charit- 
able to the faults of others, and his whole career has been of such a nature as 
to gain for him friends throughout the communitv in which he has spent his 
entire life. 



WILLL\M W. GORE. 

Dependent very largely upon his own resources from his early youth, 
William W. Gore, of Brown township, has attained no insignificant success, 
and though he may have, like most men of affairs, encountered obstacles and 
met with reverses, he has pressed steadily forward, ever willing to work for 
the end he has in view. His tenacity and fortitude are due, no doubt, in a 
large measure to the worthy traits inherited from his sterling ancestors, whose 
high ideals and worthy principles he has ever sought to perpetuate in all the 
relations of life. 

William \\\ Gore was born near Shelby^'ille, Shebly county, Indiana, 
October 10, 1864, the son of Silas and Sarah (Barnes) Gore, both natives 
of Virginia, being brought by their parents to Indiana while still quite small. 
Sarah Barnes' parents entered land from the government in Shelby county 
and lived there the remainder of their lives. Silas Gore's parents died while 
he was still quite young and as he grew older he took up the carpenter's trade 
and was the leading carpenter in Shelby and Rush counties until about 1874. 
Building a house or barn was in those days a far more laborious task than it 
is today and when he took a contract for a building, it meant that he had to 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 781 

prepare the timbers used in same. As saw-mills were not then in use, he 
would go out into the woods, select his trees, fell them and hew out all of the 
required boards, rafters, sills, etc. This w^as naturally a very slow process and 
he considered he had done well when he built tw^o buildings a year. He was 
married when twenty-five years old and to him and his wife were born four- 
teen children. In 1874 he moved to North Manchester, Indiana, and estab- 
lished a tile manufacturing business. At the end of five years he sold this 
factory and moved to Howard county, this state, where he built another tile 
factory near Greentovvn. This he operated for some four years, when he came 
to Hendricks county and built another factory about a mile and a half east of 
Brownsburg. While the family resided in this county the mother died, and 
three years after coming here Mr. Gore took his family back to Howard 
county, where he purchased a small piece of land and retired from active 
business. There he passed the remainder of his life. 

William W. Gore remained under the parental roof until the time of his 
marriage, on November 7, 1884, to Rosie Moore, who was born December 8, 
1 86 1, near Avon, Indiana. She was a daughter of George W. and Sarah 
Jane (Williams) Moore, both of whom were originally from Chillicothe, 
Ohio, being brought here by their respective parents while they were still 
young, unmarried people. Both families settled near Avon. Rosie Moore 
was one of a family of fourteen children and remained at home until the time 
of her marriage to the subject. Sarah Jane Williams, mother of Mrs. Gore, 
was a daughter of Ezekiel and Sally Williams. 

After his marriage, for eight years Mr. Gore worked on a farm by the 
day. Six years of this time was for one man. He then rented an eighty- 
acre farm four miles northeast of Brownsburg and lived there three years. 
He later rented seventy-two acres north of Brownsburg, where he lived one 
year and then contracted for the renting of a hundred-acre tract about five 
miles northeast of Brownsburg. Here he resided for eleven years. He then 
was able to purchase a ninety-two-acre tract directly across the public high- 
way from the Lawler school house, w'here the family now lives. To Mr. and 
Mrs. Gore have been born three sons. Oscar, Atlas and Roy, all of whom are 
still at home. Mr. Gore is considered one of the up-to-date farmers of the 
township and, while he raises excellent crops, he does not specialize in any 
particular line nor raise any fancy stock for selling, yet he always has cpiite a 
quantity for marketing". By his own unfailing energy and determination to 
succeed, Mr. Gore has mastered the obstacles that confronted him and has won 
an excellent degree of success, at the same time so ordering his life as to win 



I' 



782 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

the confidence and respect of all who know him. He is a stanch supporter of 
the Democratic party and takes an active interest in that party's affairs, having 
served as road supervisor for two years. Both Mr. and Mrs. Gore are mem- 
bers of the Christian church, to which they give liberal support. Mr. Gore 
is a man of splendid personality and because of his industrious habits and 
persistent energy, he has attained definite success in his vocation and enjoys 
the respect and esteem of the community in which he resides. 



JOHN WESLEY HUNT. 



The late John Wesley Hunt, of Eel RiA'er township, this county, who, 
many years ago, passed on to the silent land, was a man whose name is en- 
rolled very high on the list of honored and worthy citizens of a past generaton 
in this county. He was a man who made a persistent effort to lead a life in 
every respect in harmony with the higher rules of ethics and established mor- 
ality, and, l)eing industrious and public spirited, he did a great deal for the 
general good of the community honored by his citizenship. When he passed 
away he left what is much more to be desired, a good name and an untar- 
nished reputation. He was one of the many gallant boys in blue who went 
from Hendricks county to fight for the country's flag, and in that struggle he 
contracted a disease which ultimately caused his death. It is a pleasure to 
record the life history of a man such as Mr. Hunt, a man whose fine charac- 
ter and g'enerous qualities of mind and heart won for him a high place among 
the men of his generation. 

John Wesley Hunt was born near North Salem, Hendricks county, in 
1838, and died in 1892 on the farm where he was born. His parents were 
Johnson and Louisa (Davis) Hunt. Johnson Hunt was born in 18 16 in 
Kentucky, near Mt. Sterling, and came to this county Avhen he was sixteen 
years of age. The Johnsons in Kentucky were slave owners and up to the 
time when he came to this county Johnson had never performed any manual 
labor. However, upon coming here, he at once became imbued \Aith the 
s])irit of work, and during his long life in this county there was no man who 
was more industrious and attended more strictly to his own duties than John- 
son Hunt. Shortly after coming to this county he married Louisa Davis, 
the daughter of Nathan Davis, and his first wife, whose genealogy is presented 
elsewhere in this volume in the sketch of Quincy A. Davis. L^pon his mar- 
riage Johnson Hunt bought a farm north of North Salem and started in to 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 783 

carve out his fortune in the virgin wilderness. He added to his holdings from 
time to time, until at his death, on September 15, 1876, he was the owner of 
three hundred and twenty acres of land in this township. His wife died June 
25, 1866. 

John Wesley Hunt grew to manhood on the home farm and upon the 
outbreak of the Civil war he enlisted in 1861 in the Fifty-first Regiment In- 
diana Volunteer Infantry, and in six months after his enlistment he was taken 
sick and for a long time was unable to be on duty, being finally honorably dis- 
charged because of total disability. He returned to this county and in 1866 
married Nancy Davis, a native of this county and the daughter of Jesse and 
JMinerva (Zimmerman) Davis. 

Jesse Davis was born near Mt. Sterling, Kentucky, the son of Enoch and 
Nancy (Hart) Davis. Enoch Davis and his family came to Hendricks 
county, Indiana, in pioneer times and settled two miles northwest of North 
Salem. Their first home was nothing but a rude log cabin, with dirt floor, 
pole bed and a stick-and-mud chimney, and their household possessions con- 
sisted of one skillet and one kettle. Practically everything they used they 
made themselves. Thev ground their own meal, spun the cloth and made their 
own clothes, were their own doctors, teachers, nurses and, in fact, were prac- 
ticallv a communit}- unto themselves for some years. Minerva Zimmerman 
was born in Montgomery county, Kentucky, and was the daughter of John 
and Nancy (]\Iyers) Zimmerman. John and Nancy Zimmerman were the 
parents of fifteen children and were among the first settlers in Eel River 
township, where they entered government land. Each one of the children re- 
ceived a farm on which to start a home and all of them became the heads of 
families whose descendants are still among the best known people in the 
county. Jesse Davis was a life-long farmer and a man who was well worthy 
the respect of his nieghbors. He and his wife were both dcA'out members of 
the Christian church. 

After the marriage of John W. Hunt, he operated a saw-mill for three 
years in the northeastern part of Eel River township, on land which Jesse 
Davis had entered, after which time he discontinued the operation of the mill 
and sold the land and moved to the farm now occupied by Grant Sellers, 
west of North Salem. About 1887 he built a beautiful and attractive resi- 
dence there and remained on that farm until late in life. For the last ten 
years of his life he was in poor health, but still remained on the farm until 
his death, in 1892. 

Mr. and Mrs. Flunt were the parents of four children : Ada Catherine, 
the wife of Grant Sellers, Avho now lives on the old home farm in the house 



784 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



bmlt bv h.r tatlK-r^ and they iKue two children, Benjatitin Franklin and 
Rhoda Cathenne; Ewell Entntett, born Jantiary 24. 1875, has lived on the 
home place all h,s I.fe and now owns sixty-seven acres of the honte place He 
and his mother have lived together since the death of his father He is a 
men,ber of the Free and Accepted Masons and is also an earnest nrenrber of 
tire Chnsfan church. He has alhed himself with the new Progressive party 
The other two chddren are deceased, one being a twm brother of Ewell E 
who d,ed m mtancy, while Lena Ann died at the age of se^■enteen vears " 
Pohfcally Mr. Hnnt was a stanch Republican and was alwa;s active in 
the councls of h.s party, although he never held any office. He was a ntem- 
ber of the Free and Accepted Masons, and he and his wife were both devout 
ntentbers of the Christian church. The people of this countv of a ^t genera- 
l.on rententber John W. Hnnt as a n,an of irreproachable character a^rd one 
who was always ready to accon,niodate anyone and ready to help those who 
were m need and chstress. He was the architect of his own fortune and upon 
h.sent.re career there rests no blemish, for he was true to the highest ideals 
and prnrctples .n hfe. He lived and labored to worthy ends and as one of th 
sterhng ct.zens and representative men of Hendricks countv in the ..enera- 
>ons that are now numbered with the irrevocable past his menrory nterits a 
tribute of honor on these pages. ems a 



DR. FRANK E. HILL. 

demo'nst^td"b,'':i,'J'' '""' ''™'' '""^ '° '""^ ''^^^"'"^- " - » --- 
demonstrated by all human experience that a man gets out of this life what 

he puts into It, plus a reasonable interest on the inve^ment. The pr sent a^ 

.s essentially utilitarian and the life of every successful man carries lesson 

-— ■■ even ut brief resume.' ^^^H ^1::^^ "o ^ mra:," 
preparing the following sketch of the well-known dentist of BrownZg 

o It an 1 r ''JT "'™ °' "" '''' >'^^" °^ '- >'fe to his love 

n,eirf';ei:t'':eXr '™"' ' '"'-''' ""'°" ^ '^'^"*^ °^ -^"-^^^- 

this c^Zv ^' "'"' ■*''° '' ^"'^'^'^^^'""y practicing dentistry at Brownsbur. 
'h.s county, is a native of the Hoosier state, having been born in LaGran^e 




DR. AND MRS. FRANK E. HILL 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 785 

county on July 31, 1880, the son of John C. and Sarah L. (Baker) Hill. 
John C. Hill was a farmer in LaGrange county for many years and was fol- 
lowing this vocation at the time of his death, which occurred April -|. 1907. 
His wife died April 30, 19 14. Doctor Hill lived on the home farm when a 
boy, attending the district schools of their locality and later attended the high 
school at LaGrange. The last two years of his high school course he studied 
at a town in Illinois where he had a brother-in-law instructor in the school. 
After finishing his high school course he returned to his home and enlisted 
in the United States navy, where he spent four years, serving on seven or 
eight different ships, and in this way travelled to all parts of the world. He 
was with the United States Ship "Bennington" in 1905 when, in the harbor 
at San Diego, California, her boilers exploded and seventy-seven men, more 
than half of her crew% were killed outright. Sixty-six of the victims were 
buried in one grave. At the time of the explosion, Mr. Hill was connected 
with the commissary department and was himself on the sick list, x^t the 
very instant the explosion occurred, he was in the act of coming up the stairs 
from the sick bay and as a result of escaping steam and flying debris his eyes 
were injured so as to seriously impair his sight for some time. He also had 
two toes so badly scalded that it was necessary to amputate them, l)ut, despite 
his injuries, he immediately returned to the hold and assisted in rescuing 
injured men from alley-w^ays, engine rooms and compartments, right in the 
midst of the scalding steam. Two men fell dead right at his feet and today, 
after the lapse of so many years, he still suffers from the nervous shock of 
that trying ordeal. On two occasions on regaining the deck with injured 
men he fell in a dead faint, resuming his labors as soon as consciousness re- 
turned and keeping at his task as long as it was necessary. In recognition 
of the endurance and l^ravery he displayed on that occasion, the government 
has awarded him a medal, which takes the form of a bronze star pendant and 
was made at a United States mint. . On the reverse side is the following in- 
scription : "For extraordinary heroism displayed at the time of the explosion 
of a boiler of the U. S. S. 'Bennington' at San Diego, California, July 21, 
1905." Doctor Hill, in addition to the medal above mentioned, was also given 
one hundred dollars in money and a button of the Legion of Honor, the latter 
being awarded only for the saving of human life. During his service in the 
navy, he accumulated many curios and mementoes from foreign lands and 
has many interesting and thrilling experiences to relate. On many occasions 
he displayed marked bravery and inasmuch as he is the son of a veteran of 
the Civil War, this trait may be unusually strong in him. His father served 
(50) 



yS6 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

for three }'ears and ten months as sergeant of Company H, Forty-fourth 
Regiment Indiana Vohmteer Infantry, passing through many serious con- 
flicts, the evidences of which he bore on his body to his dying day. He was 
an active member of the Grand Army of the RepubHc. 

A short time after the explosion at San Diego, Doctor Hill's term of en- 
listment in the navy expired and he returned to his home. In 1906 he ma- 
triculated at the Indiana Dental College at Indianapolis, from which he was 
graduated in 1909. He immediately after graduation came to Brownsburg 
where he engaged in the practice of his chosen profession and has resided 
here since. In 1908 he was united in marriage with Lulu C. Wilson, who 
was born at Bloomington, Indiana, a daughter of Samuel S. and Serepta 
Wilson. Her parents now reside near Center Point, Clay county, this state, 
where her father is engaged in farming. 

Doctor Hill has made rapid strides in his profession and has the distinc- 
tion of being the only dentist in Brownsburg and vicinity. He holds his fra- 
ternal affiliations with the time-honored body of Free and Accepted Masons, 
in which he has attained the fifth degree. He is also a member of the 
Knights of Pythias and the Knights of the Macabees. While he is not a 
member of any church, Mrs. Hill belongs to the Christian church and in the 
welfare of that church Doctor Hill is interested. In the public life of the 
community where he resides. Doctor Hill takes an intelligent interest. He 
is a man of strong character and marked ability and because of these ele- 
ments and his genuine personal worth, he enjoys a marked popularity in the 
localitv honored bv his residence. 



JOHN MILTON SMITH. 



The life of John Milton Smith has been characterized by public-spirited 
and generous acts. Honesty and steadfastness of purpose have marked his 
career throughout and his many friends regard him as one of the most intel- 
ligent and progressive citizens of Flendricks ccnuity. He has always exer- 
cised an influence for the general good of his community, and. although meet- 
ing with many discouragements and obstacles along his pathway, his opti- 
mistic nature has never forsaken him. He was not favored by inherited 
wealth or the assistance of influential friends, but in spite of this he has, by 
his perseverance, industry and wise economy, attained a comfortable station 
in life. 



HENDftlCKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 787 

John Milton Smith, the son of Jacob and Margaret (Cooper) Smith, 
was born in Boone county, Indiana, October 20, 1867. Jacob Smith was 
born in Hendricks county in 1840 and was the son of Reul3en and Melinda 
(Turpin) Smith. Reuben Smith was one of the earhest settlers of Boone 
county, but at the time when Jacob was born he was living in Hendricks 
county. Melinda Turpin was born in this county southeast of Brownsburg 
and was the daughter of Jacob Turpin. who was among the earliest pioneers 
of the county. The Turpins came to this county from Scott county, Ken- 
tucky. When Jacob Smith was three years of age his parents settled south- 
east of Lebanon, in Boone county, and there the family home was maintained 
until the death of Jacob Smith, on October 19, 19 13. Margaret Cooper, the 
wife of Jacob Smith, was born and reared in Marion county, the daughter of 
Samuel and Elizabeth (Moore) Cooper. Samuel Cooper and his wife came 
to Marion county from Ohio, making the overland trip on horseback and 
carrying one small child with them. Samuel Cooper became one of the first 
settlers of Marion county. For some years after settling there they were 
greatly annoyed by the thieving of the Indians. One day Mr. Cooper took his 
gun and threatened to shoot the first Indian he saw around his house, and 
the result was that there was no more thieving on his property. 

Jacob Smith, father of him whose history is here recorded, was a worthy 
man in every respect; a soldier of the Civil War, serving in the Seventy- 
ninth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, as a fifer; an active member of 
the Baptist church, and a man who was highly respected by every one who 
knew him. His widow is still living in Boone county, this state. 

John Milton Smith received his education in the schools of Boone 
county and remained on the home farm until 1889. He then came to North 
Salem, this county, and engaged in the dry goods and grocery business in 
partnership with Elijah Shirley. Two years later he sold out his interest in 
this store and spent a year in Terre Haute, Indiana, and Vandalia, Illinois, 
after which he returned to North Salem and worked for two years in a gro- 
cery store. He and his brother-in-law, John W. Lackey, then formed a part- 
nership and engaged in the grocery business ag"ain in North Salem for the 
next four years. Mr. Smith then sold out his interests and for the next five 
years engaged in agricultural pursuits in this township. He then bought one 
hundred and seventy-three acres of land northeast of North Salem, and three 
years later sold that farm and bought another tract of one hundred and fifty 
acres northwest of North Salem. His last farm adjoins the corporation line 
of the town. 

Mr. Smith was married on March 3, 1891, to Ona Smith, a native of 



788 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

this county and the daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth (Rogers) Smith. 
Samuel Smith was a native of this county and his wife of Kentucky. Samuel 
Smith was a carpenter by trade and also owned a farm northwest of North 
Salem; his death occurred when Ona, the wife of John I\l. Smith, w-as a small 
girl. Mr. and Mrs. John M. Smith are the parents of four children, Fred, 
Kenneth, Lucile and Nellie, all still at home. 

Fraternally, Mr. Smith is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons 
and takes an active interest in the lodge at North Salem, where he is now 
ser\"ing his third term as master of the lodge. He and his wife are both 
devout and faithful memliers of the Christian church. Mr. Smith possesses 
the happy faculty of not only making friends, but of binding them to him by 
his good qualities of hand and heart. 



GEORGE EDGAR DAVENPORT. 

The commercial world has come to recognize the farmer's importance 
and has surrounded him with many con\eniences not thought of fifty or one 
hundred years ago. The inventor has given him the self-binder, the riding 
plow, the steam thresher and many other labor-saving devices. And the tiller 
of the soil has not been slow to take advantage of the improvements thus 
invented and offered. Among the up-to-date farmers of Hendricks county is 
George Edgar Davenport, of Eel River township, who was born February 7, 
1874, in the township where he is now residing, the son of George Russell 
and Drusilla (Pennington) Davenport. 

George Davenport's father was a native of this county, and his parents, 
William and Nancy (^Dotson) Davenport, were natives of Virginia, who 
came from that state to Indiana shortly after their marriage on horseback 
and entered land southeast of North Salem, in this township. William Daven- 
port died while George R. was a small boy. On reaching manhood he mar- 
ried Drusilla Pennington, who was born in this township about one and one- 
half miles northwest of North Salem, the daughter of Hampton and Nancy 
(Dent) Pennington. The Pennington family came from Virginia and en- 
tered land in this township. Mr. Pennington dying at the early age of forty- 
two and leaving a large family. When the family arrived in this county 
there were very few settlers here, and thev had to blaze a trail through the 
woods in order to get to the land which they had entered. He and his good 
wife built a rude hut around a big rock, and used the rock to cook upon. An 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 789 

interesting instance happened when they built their first fire on the rock. It 
was cool weather and the rattlesnakes had collected under the rock, and when 
the rock became heated they crawled out from underneath the stone and Air. 
and Mrs. Pennington killed them one by one as they emerged from under- 
neath the rock. The widow of Hampton Pennington never remarried, but 
reared her children and lived to the good old age of eighty years. 

After his marriage. George R. Davenport made his home southeast of 
North Salem, on what is known as the Alexander Williams farm. He and 
his young bride started in housekeeping under conditions which would dis- 
courage any but the most courageous of young couples. They lived in a rude 
log cabin and their bedstead was made by boring holes in the wall and sup- 
porting the outer corner by a stake driven in the ground. The cooking was 
all done in the fireplace, of course, and with the rudest of cooking utensils. 
Under such conditions they began their married life and no doubt they were 
just as happy as the young married couples of today, who start under the most 
auspicious circumstances. During the war Mr. Davenport met with severe 
losses, one of the most severe being the paying of a note on \N'hich he had gone 
security. They lived Avest of N^orth Salem until the death of Mrs. Davenport, 
in 1898. when they moved to Putnam county, this state, and bought the farm 
near Barnard. There were six children by Mr. Davenport's first marriage, 
five of whom are now living. Some time after the death of his first wife, he 
married again, but the second wife died two years later. 

George Edgar Davenport received a good common school education and 
at the age of twenty was married and began to farm with his father. A year 
later he bought a small farm about three miles northwest of North Salem, on 
which he lived for four or five years. He then moved to his father-in-law's 
farm, where he remained for the next two years, and then spent the two 
following years in the creamery business in Alulberry Grove. Bond county. 
Illinois, after which he returned to Hendricks county and bought fortv-six 
acres west of North Salem and, in 1909, bought his present farm of eighty 
acres tv/o and one-half miles south of North Salem. He now has eighty 
acres in this township. He has very valuable and desirable land and his farm 
is one of the most attractive farms in the township, the improvements em- 
bracing everything modern. con\-enient and suitable for up-to-date farming. 
He has paid particular attention to the raising of cattle and hogs and has met 
with encouraging success in this line of agriculture. 

Mr. Davenport was married November 9, 1894, to Cora Page, the 
daughter of Jeremiah J. Page, whose family histor}- is recorded elsewhere in 
this volume. Mr. and Mrs. Davenport are the parents of two children. Ken- 



790 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

neth and one child \vho died in early infancy. He is a member of the Free 
and Accepted Masons, and he and his wife both belong to the Order of the 
Eastern Star. They are both devout and faithful members of the Christian 
church and to that denomination give their hearty support. Mr. Davenport 
is a man of strong character, whose success is the indication of his good busi- 
ness judgment, and he is widely known in this section of the county and 
wherever known is well liked and esteemed. 



JOSEPH LAMB. 



Though no land is richer in opportunities or offers greater ad^■antages 
to its citizens than America, success is not to be attained through desire, but 
must be persistenth^ sought. In this country "labor is king," and the man 
who resolutely sets to work to accomplish a given purpose is certain of suc- 
cess if he lias but the qualities of perseverance, untiring energy and practical 
common sense. One of the worthy citizens of Hendricks county who, through 
diligence and persistent efforts, has attained definite success and has won the 
respect of all who know him through his fair dealing with his fellow men is 
Joseph Lamb, who has spent his whole life in this county. 

Joseph Lamb, the son of Joel and Eunice (Lamb) Lamb, was born in 
1846 in Marion township, this county. His parents were both natives of 
North Carolina, where they were married, and shortly after this event they 
put all their possessions in a one-horse wagon and made the long overland 
trip from North Carolina to this county. They located in Marion township, 
where they entered forty acres of land from the government, but after a year 
they became discouraged and went to Ohio ; but Ohio off'ered no better op- 
portunities, so they returned to Hendricks county, mortgaged their forty acres 
and purchased forty acres more, then, with the thrift and frugality which 
characterized our pioneer forefathers, they started to work to clear the farm 
and pay off' their debts. Joel Lamb was a life-long farmer and as the years 
went by his efforts were increasingh^ successful until at his death he was the 
owner of two hundred and forty acres. Mr. and Mrs. Joel Lamli were the 
parents of fourteen children, of whom seven died in childhood and seven 
reached maturity. The mother of these children died about 1870, and after- 
ward the father went to Kansas, where his death occurred in 1883. 

Joseph Lamb, one of the seven children of his parents who grew to 
maturity remained on the home farm until his marriage, at the age of twenty- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 79I 

five, at which time he married Ella Alontgomery, a native of Union township, 
this county, and the daughter of James and Rebecca (Tharp) Montgomery. 
The Alontgomery family came from Pennsylvania to this county early in its 
history, settling near Lizton. 

Upon his marriage Mr. Lamb began farming on the old home farm, but 
two years later he moved to the eastern part of Eel River township, where he 
bought eighty acres of land where he is now living. In 1886 his house, with 
all of its contents, was destroyed by fire, after which he built the residence in 
which he is now living. In 1888 his wife died, and in the same year his barn, 
with all of its contents, was destroyed by fire. 

Mr. Lamb was married the second time on July 8, 1891. to Carrie E. 
Gossett, a native of Brown township, this county, and the daughter of Thomas 
A. and Nettie ]\1. (Combs) Gossett. Thomas Gossett was born near Plain- 
field, the son of Nathaniel W. and Mary G. Gossett, who were natives of 
North Carolina. Thomas Gossett was born December 21, 1841, and was the 
eldest of a family of five brothers and seven sisters. He began teaching in 
the public schools in i860 and. with the exception of the four years which he 
spent in the Civil War, he was engaged in public school work until February, 
1899. Six years of this time he spent as county superintendent of the Hen- 
dricks county schools. 

Mr. Gossett had a very interesting and at the same time a most harrow- 
ing experience during his four years' service in the Civil War. He enlisted 
in August, 1861; in. Company I. .Seventh Regiment Indiana Volunteer In- 
fantry, and during fifteen months of the four years he was incarcerated in 
five different prisons, Lynchburg, Belle Isle, Richmond, Virginia, Anderson- 
ville and Milan, Georgia. In the latter prison he contracted scurvy and his 
legs had to buried in the ground up to the trunk of his body in order to give 
him relief and to keep them from rotting off. The disease never left him 
until his death, and he was a constant sufferer from it. In May, 1898, one 
of his feet had to be amputated, and in April, 1899, he finally died, hav'ing' 
made a life-long fight against the disease. He was a good man in every sense 
of the word and was responsive to all of the Christian virtues. He was a good 
soldier, both physically and spiritually, and fought a brave fight for over 
fifty years. 

The second wife of Mr. Lamb is a woman of great refinement and cul- 
ture and before her marriage she attended the State Normal School at Terre 
Haute and was a teacher for three years. Mr. and ]\lrs. Lamb are the par- 
ents of four children, Loren ^^^, Roy R., Nettie Esther and Ralph E. Loren 
married ]\Iav Young and lives near his father, and has one son, Russell Flovd. 



79^ HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Fraternally. Mr. Lamb is a member of the Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows and his wife is a zealous member of the Christian church. Mr. 
Lamb has a fine farm of one hundred and forty acres, on which he carries on 
a diversified system of farming in addition to raising a considerable amount 
of live stock each year. Personally, he is a man of genial and kindly impulses 
and has won a host of warm and loyal friends in the community which has 
been honored by his citizenship. 



JOHN DURHAM. 



Hard and laborious effort was the lot of John Durham during his youth 
and early manhood, since he was born at a time when this county was a 
primeval wilderness. His fidelity to duty has won for him the respect and 
confidence of those with whom he has been thrown in contact, and by patient 
continuance in good ser^■ice he has gradually risen from an humble station in 
life to his present high standing among the leading men of Hendricks county. 

John Durham was born in Montgomery county, Indiana, on May 3, 
1838, and is the son of John and Mary M. (Fields) Durham, both of whom 
were born and reared in Boyle county, Kentucky, and were married there 
before coming to this state. The father of John Durham, Sr., and grand- 
father of the one of whom this chronicle speaks, was also called John. The 
grandfather was born in Virginia and came to the state of Kentucky at the 
age of nine with his parents and lived in a fort at Harrodsburg for a year or 
so because of the Indian troubles. Mary M. Fields was descended from Irish 
ancestry, her grandfather coming from Ireland to this country in an early 
da.y. John and Mary Durham came from Kentucky to Montgomery county, 
Indiana, in 1835, locating near Waveland. The grandfather of John Durham 
came also and entered a large amount of government land and gave a farm 
to each one of his children, on which to start in life. 

John Durham grew up in this new environment and lived at home until 
his marriage, which occurred on December 22, 1865, to Lee A. Tucker, a na- 
tive of this county and the daughter of Lee and Miranda (Durham) Tucker. 
His wife is a grandmother of Nathan and David Tucker, whose history may 
be found elsewhere in this volume. Miranda Durham was born in Boyle 
county, Kentuckv. the daughter of Thomas Durham, her father being a 
distant relative of John Durham. 

After Mr. Durham's marriage, in 1865, he came to Eel River township. 



I 



HENDRICKS COUNTV, INDIANA. 793 

this county, and began farming about half-way between Jamestown and North 
Salem, where he remained from December, ICS65. until the fall of 19 13, a 
period of forty-eight years. During his long career as a farmer he has seen 
many ups and downs and has encountered obstacles of all kinds, and yet has 
maintained his cheerful disposition through it all. Success has crowned his 
efforts and today he is the owner of five hundred and twenty acres of fine 
farming land in this township. However, recentlv he has given away all of 
this land but one hundred and eighty acres, dividing it among his children. 

Air. and Mrs. Durham were the parents of seven children: Charles 
Omer, physician and no\\' coroner of Marion county, Indiana, who married 
Mary Maley. and has one daughter. Frances; Frank C. deceased, who was a 
lawyer in Indianapolis for a time and later in Chicago, and died in the latter 
city in 1909; John L.. who is on the old home farm north of North Salem, 
is married to Adeline Clark and they have two children, Glenn and Walter; 
Clarence S. is in ^Missouri ; Flarry C. and Thomas G. both live at North 
Salem and are engaged in farming, while Mary F. is at home with her father. 
The mother of these children died in 1911. 

Mr. Durham has been a life-long Democrat and has always taken an 
intelligent interest in public affairs. He has twice been elected as trustee of 
Eel River township, his last term ending in 1883. He has always kept in 
touch with the times and the trend of current thought, and has always dis- 
charged the duties of citizenship in the intelligent manner becoming the level- 
headed American citizen of today. He has taken a deep interest in whatever 
makes for the material advancement of the community and endorses all worthy 
enterprises wherebv his fellow men will be benefited and made better. 



OLR^ER PERRY OWEN. 

Among the thriving agriculturists and stock men of Hendricks county. 
Indiana, 01i\er Perry Ow^en has been especially conspicuous for many years. 
Few men of his experience have achicAcd such marked results, none occupy a 
more prominent place in the confidence and esteem of his fellow men, and it is 
safe to presume that his example and influence haA-e done as much to promote 
the general interests of the locality as any other agency in the vicinity of 
North Salem, where he maintains his beautiful home. 

Oliver Perry Owen, a stock man and farmer living one and one-half 
miles northwest of North Salem, was born December 2t„ 1855, ^^^ ^^^^ north- 



794 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

western part of Eel River township, in this county. His parents, Horatio and 
Margaret ( Sears) Owen, were both natives of Clark county, Kentucky, where 
they Hved until after their marriage and removal to this county in 1833, when 
they entered one hundred and sixty acres of government land in the north- 
western part of Eel River township, where they lived until 1867. They made 
the trip from their native state to this county in a wagon and began life under 
truly pioneer conditions. Horatio Owen sold his farm and moved about one 
and one-half miles northwest of North Salem, where he bought another tract 
of one hundred and sixty acres. Being a man of thrift and economy, he was 
enabled a few years later to add eighty acres more to this farm and at the time 
of his death, April 4. 1881, he was the owner of two hundred and forty acres 
of well-improved land in this to^^ nship. His wife died February 11, 1888. 
Mr. and Mrs. Horatio Owen were the parents of nine children, two of whom 
died in infancy; Hamilton died in 1867, at the age of twenty-two years; 
William died at the age of thirty-two, leaving a widow and one son ; Elizabeth, 
who died in the seventies, was the wife of James McCloud ; Rebecca was the 
wife of Joseph Camplin and died in September, 1881 ; Keziah died in igo6 
and was unmarried. The other two are James M. and Oliver P., and these are 
the only two of the original nine children who are living at the present time. 

Oliver Perry Owen remained on the • home farm until his marriage, 
which occurred on November 21, 1880, when he was united to Florence M. 
Duckworth, a native of this township and the daughter of James J. and Mary 
E. (Mark) Duckworth. James J. Duckworth was a native of Kentucky and, 
after his father's death in that state, came with his mother to Indiana, settling 
near North Salem, this county. Here he married Mary E. Mark, and en- 
gaged in farming until about 1879, when he moved into North Salem, but con- 
tinued to manage his farm. His wife died in 1877, ^^'^^ his death occurred 
on January 3, 1911. He was a JNIason and a devout Methodist, while his wife 
belonged to the Christian church. 

After his marriage, Oliver P. Owen began farming on the place where 
he now lives, about one and one-half miles northwest of North Salem, and 
has continued to reside here until the present time. He started in life with 
one hundred and thirty acres of land and has since added ninety-seven acres 
more to his homestead, which is a very productive and desirable farm, on 
which stands an attractive and comfortable home and substantial and conven- 
ient outlniildings. In connection \\ ith general farming he raises various kinds 
of live stock, in which he has been very succcessful, and is deserving of a 
great deal of credit for what he has accomplished, for it has been done in an 
honest manner, through hard work and skillful management. 



. HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 795 

Mr. and Mrs. Owen are the parents of four children: Taylor W., who 
married Edna Clay, lives in North Salem : Logan married Jennie Tucker and 
lives on a farm one mile north of North Salem ; Maggie died at the age of 
eleven months; Ruth is at home with her parents. Mr. Owen is a hard 
worker, a man of rare foresight and business ability, and has prospered 
from year to year and thus developed one of the best farms in the township. 
He has been instrumental in the upbuilding of his community and is well 
known and highly respected throughout this part of the county. 



PLEASANT A. HACKLEMAN. 

The Hackleman family is one of the pioneer families of Indiana, the first 
representative of the family who came to Indiana being Abram Hackleman, 
who came to Indiana before it was admitted to the Union in 1816. The first 
members of the family lived in Rush county, Indiana, and later in Hancock 
county. The various members of the family have taken an active part in the 
community life wherever they have settled and have always been numbered 
among the substantial citizens of their respective communities. 

Pleasant Alvie Hackleman, the son of Abram and Martha (Manwaring) 
Hackleman, was born October 30. 1873. in Rush county, Indiana. Abram 
Hackleman was born in Rush county, Indiana, September 6. 1835, the son of 
Richard and Hannah (McCune) Hackleman. Richard Hackleman was a 
native of South Carolina, the son of Abram Hackleman, and came with his 
parents to Rush county, this state, when a small boy, and when he was grown 
Rushville contained only three houses. He was a tax collector in the early 
history of the state, and rode on horseback from house to house collecting* 
the taxes. He was a lifelong farmer and in the early history of the state 
ran a small grist-mill in the central part of Rush county. In the latter part 
of the thirties Richard Hackleman moved to Hancock county, Indiana, and 
bought a farm, living there the remainder of his life. He took a great interest 
in public affairs and served twenty-one years as justice of the peace, retiring 
from that office against the wishes of his neighbors. Hannah McCune, the 
wife of Richard Hackleman, was born in Pennsylvania, and came to Franklin 
county, Indiana, with her parents, where she lived until her marriage. 

Abram Hackleman lived in Hancock county with his parents until he 
was of age and then moved to Rush county, where he followed farming for a 
few vears. Later he moved back to Hancock county and upon his father's 



7g6 HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 

death he bought oul the heirs of the estate and remained on the old home 
farm several years. About twenty years ago Abram Hackleman moved to 
Boone countv and located two miles west of Jamestown, buying two hundred 
acres in one place and over three hundred in another, and is now the owner 
of over five hundred acres of highly improved land in Hendricks and Boone 
counties. 

Abram Hackleman was married in 1858 to Martha Ann Man waring, the 
daughter of Solomon Manwaring and his first wife, and was a native of 
Sullivan county, Indiana. Solomon Manwaring was born in Franklin county, 
Indiana, but lived the most of his life in Sullivan county, his first wife dying 
when Martha was an infant. Three children were born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Abram Hackleman ; Rosa. Belle> who married Thomas Trotter and died in 
1908, leaving two children. Lena and Fred ; Pleasant A., whose history is here 
recorded, and James Harlan, who li^•es on his father's farm in Boone county, 
this state, and was married in 1900 to May Burns, of Decatur county. Indi- 
ana, and they have four children. Velma. Wayne. Grace and Ward. Mrs. 
Abram Hackleman died in 1902. 

Pleasant A. Hackleman spent the earlier part of his boyhood in Rush 
county, and later removed to Hancock county with his parents, who after- 
wards moved to Marion county, where they remained for a short time, and 
when he was about twelve years old the family moved to the southern part 
of Boone county, about two miles west of Jamestown, where his father has 
since resided. 

Pleasant A. Hackleman grew to maturity on the home farm and re- 
ceived his education in the schools of Rush, Marion and Boone counties, and 
upon reaching the age of twenty-one he was married, on March 2, 1895, to 
Catherine Robbins, the daughter of Benjamin and Dora (Davidson) Rob- 
bins. Benjamin S. B. P. Robbins was born in Marion township, this county, 
on December 11, 1836. and was the son of Benjamin and Ruth (Parker) 
Robbins. Benjamin Robbins was born in North Carolina, the son of William 
and Leah ( Lamb) Robbins. Ruth Parker was born in North Carolina in 
1812, and in that state she was married to Benjamin Robbins. After two 
children were born to them in that state, they moved, about 1830, to Ohio, 
and a year later came to Indiana and entered land in Putnam county. Benja- 
min Rcbbins was a carpenter by trade, and when he came to Putnam county 
he selected land on which there was water power, and he at once built a large 
mill five stories in height on Eel river, a mile south of Barnard, and after a 
time he hired a miller to operate the mill and he himself went to New \\'in- 
chester and erected a steam saw-mill, li\ing at the latter place from about 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 797 

i8:;o uBti! hi. death in 1858, at the age of forty-seven. His deatlt was catted 
bvV-vr-ihsis Ruth Parker, the wife of Benjamin Robbins. was the daughter 
of Tohn and Katherine (Parsons) Parker. John Parker was a phys.c.an 
and Ined his wliole Hfe in his nati^■e state of North Carohna. Mrs Ku h 
( Parker) Robbins died in 1877. Benjamin Robbins. Jr., grew up under the 
parental roof and assisted his father in the saw-mill at Xew Wmchester ,n 
earlv life In 1874 he married Dora Davidson, the daughter of ^anu.el and 
Rena (Parsons) Davidson, of North Salem. Samuel Da^■idson was born m 
Kentucky and came to this state with his parents early in l.te. His wife was 
a native of North Carolina, who can,e here with the Robbins fauuh^ to whom 
she was related. For a time before his marriage, Benjamm S B. P. Kobbm 
clerked in a store at North Salem, part of the time in a hardware store and 
the ren,ainder of the time in a drug store. .After h,s nmrriage he farmed 
for four vears. then he and John Fleece bu.lt a store room and engaged m 
the hardu'are business. He managed the store for some years and then Mr. 
Fleece sold out his interest and Mr. Robbins put in a grocery stock and con- 
ducted a store for about three years, when he sold the bu.ldmg and bud a 
new business block. However, he did not engage in business agam, bu 
re-entered the carpenter trade and has since that time put u,. a large number of 
silences and n 'any large barns in and around North Salem He has aho 
farmed to some extent, owning a sntall farm southeast ot North Salem. Mn 
Ind Mrs Robbins are the parents of three children, Ka,hern,e, Barton and 
homas. Barton is a carpenter an<l buUder of North Satan and marr.ed 
1cnn,e Pace, and has one son. Jack: Thomas lives in Ind.anapohs and >s a 
terber and carpenter. Mrs. Robbins died July i. 19=1. and about three 
mo hs later M . Rohbn,s went to live with his son. Barton, at North Salem, 
r and Mrs. Robbins were both life-long n,en,bers of the Chr.st.an church. 
■ ■ After Mr. Hackleman was married he went to farming on e.ghty acres 
which h,s father had given him on the county line between Boone and Hen- 
d ks counties. He has been ^■ery successful as a faru,er and has acquired 
additional land from tin,e to tinte and is now the owner ot over two hundred 
ac e of as fine land as can be found in the state. When he went on the tarn, 
ttwas almost bare of improvements, but he has spent a great deal ot ntouey 
in making it a n,odel farm. He has built a splendid and a.tractne home, good 
barn! and other outbuildings, ditched and drained it and made „ one of the 
most attractive farms in the county. 

Mr Hacklentan has allied himself w,th the Republican party and takes 
a deq, interest in all the political questions of the day. His success m hte has 
not conte about without earnest ef=fort on his part and his perseverance and 



798 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

industry have been handsoniely rewarded. In addition to his landed interests. 
he holds stock in the Citizens State Bank, of Jamestown. He and his wife 
are members of the Christian church at Jamestown, and he is a deacon in this 
denomination. Mr. and Mrs. Hackleman have two children, Ona Gladys and 
Nellie Marie. 



HORACE GREELEY COOK. 

Life is pleasant to live when yon know how to make the most of it. Some 
people start in life as if they had weights on their souls or were afraid to make 
the necessary effort to live up to a high standard. Others, by not making the 
proper study of the conditions of existence, or by not having that blessed 
trainer, a good and intelligent mother, are side-tracked at the outset and never 
seem thereafter able to get back on the main track. Much depends on the start, 
just as it does in a race. It would seem from the large success that has 
attended the efforts of Horace Greeley Cook, farmer and stock man of Hen- 
dricks county, that he not only got a proper start on the highway of life, but 
that he has been able to maintain the proper course all the while ; but those 
who know him, his methods and innate characteristics, are not at all surprised 
that this is so. 

Horace Greeley Cook, a native of this township, was born November 5, 
1853, and is the son of Henderson and Nancy J. (Banta) Cook. Henderson 

Cook was born near Mt. Airy, North Carolina, and was the son of 

and Edith (Jackson) Cook. Henderson Cook grew to manhood in North 
Carolina, and when a young man came to this county on horseback, and for a 
short time managed a hotel at Belleville. While living at Belleville, he was 
married to Nancy J. Banta, the daughter of Cornelius and Rebecca (Eccles) 
Banta. Mrs. Cook was a native of Indiana and was reared in Hendricks and 
Ripley counties. After his marriage, Henderson Cook traded in live stock 
and during the Civil War bought horses and mules and sold them to the gov- 
ernment. In 1872 he moved to a farm northwest of North Salem, which he 
already owned, and lived there until two or three years before his death, when 
he moved into North Salem, where he died in September, 1884. He was a 
staunch Republican all his life and was once nominated by his party for the 
office of sheriff, but did not care enough for the office to make a canvass. His 
widow now lives at Los Angeles, California. Mr. and Mrs. Henderson Cook 
were the parents of seven children, five of whom are li\-ing : Mrs. Luella 
Myers, whose husband is city auditor of Los Angeles, California; Mrs. Edith 



HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 799 

R. Jones, of San Francisco; Edward and Charles M., both of whom Hve in 
Los Angeles. California, and Horace Greeley, whose history is here presented. 

Horace Greeley Cook remained on the home farm until he was nearly 
twenty-eight years of age. He received a good common school education 
and later attended the academy at Belleville. Upon his marriage, in 1881, 
he bought forty acres in the northern part of Marion township and lived there 
with his wife's mother for three years. After his father's death he moved' 
to his father's farm and remained there until 1900. He then bought the farm 
of one hundred and sixty-three acres which he now owns, three miles north 
of North Salem. 

Mr. Cook was married August 28, 1881, to Hattie Walker, the daughter 
of David and Mary (Robbins) Walker, of Eel River township. David 
Walker was born June 4, 1828, in Virginia and came to this county with his 
parents when a small boy, they settling on what is now the IMichael Higgins 
farm. The parents of David Walker were Goodloe and Rebecca ( Hender- 
son) Walker. Upon reaching his majority, David Walker married Mary 
Robbins, who was born in Randolph county. North Carolina, and is the daugh- 
ter of John and Lydia (Parsons) Robbins. Lydia (Parsons) Robbins lived to 
be ninety-five years of age. Mary Walker came, with her parents, in early 
childhood to Ohio arid three vears later came to Indiana, her father entering 
one hundred and sixty acres of government land in Marion township, this 
county, about 1835, and lived there the remainder of his life. After David 
Walker was married he followed carpentering and contracting and lived the 
most of his life in the southern part of Eel River township. He enlisted in 
Company B, Seventh Regiment of Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and died in a 
military prison in Florence, South Carolina, December 4, 1864, leaving a 
widow and three children living. Mrs. Walker remained on the farm until 
her children were grown and married and in 1872 she married David Jones, 
an ex-soldier of the Civil War, who died less than a year later. Mrs. David 
Walker Jones now lives with her daughter, Mrs. Cook. 

Mr. Cook was allied with the Republican party until 1912, when he 
united with Progressive partv. believing that the principles advocated by this 
new partv vvcre better suited to the modern conditions of the country. Mr. 
and Mrs. Cook are the parents of two children, Nellie and Edith. Nellie is 
the wife of Rov M. Sharp and lives four miles east of Ladoga on a farm; 
she has one daughter, Hariett Catherine. Edith is still at home with her 
parents. The one son born to Mr. and Mrs. Cook died in early infancy. 
Mr. Cook and all the meml^ers of his family have been adherents of the 
Christian church and give to it their earnest support. Mr. Cook has long 



800 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

taken an interest in the affairs of his vicinity and county and identifies himself 
with all worthy measures of a public nature. For the exercise of grit, 
economy, perseverance and honesty, Mr. Cook has not only won material suc- 
cess, but. what is still better, he has the esteem of all w ith whom he has come 
into contact. 



ALFRED COX. 



He whose career now comes up for review has for many years been a 
citizen of this county and a brief sketch of his life will show w^hat any young 
man can hope to accomplish who has in his mind a definite aim and stead- 
fastly pushes toward that goal. His career has been a most commendable 
one in e\'ery respect. Beginning life under none too favorable auspices, he 
allowed nothing to deter him, and by persistent industry and the exercise of 
sound sense in his operations, he has gained the rewards for which he labored 
and is today numbered among the substantial and influential men of his 
community. 

Alfred Cox is a native of the Buckeye state, born on February 27, 1853, 
in the suburbs of Cincinnati. He is the son of William and Ann (Reeves) 
Cox, the former born in Londonshire, near the, city of London, England, 
and there grew to manhood. He was twice married, his first wife being a 
native of his county and when they came to America they had a family of 
two daughters and one son. The wife died while they resided near Cincin- 
nati, and there some time later he was united in marriage with Ann Reeves. 
She, too. was a native of England, having been born in Yorkshire, and was 
brought by her parents to America when a small child of three years. To this 
union were born three children, among them being the immediate subject of 
this sketch. All the children were born while the family lived in Cincinnati, 
where the father was a gardener and florist and also interested in fruit grow- 
ing. He was also a landscape gardener of no mean ability and it was he who 
laid out Spring Grove cemetery on the north side of Cincinnati. Later he 
removed to a place near Chicago, but only stayed there three years when he 
came to Marion county, this state, and located his family about three miles 
south of the city of Indianapolis. There his death occurred in 1866, at the 
time the subject of this sketch was fourteen years old. Young as he was, 
Alfred Cox assumed his position as "man of the family" and, under the 
guidance of a wise mother, carried on the business his father had left. The 
mother lived a widow for a good many years, passing away in 1892. In Oc- 




MR. AND MRS. ALFRED COX 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 8oi 

tober, 1882, the subject, together with his mother and her brothers and sis- 
ters, purchased an eighty-acre tract in the southeast portion of Lincoln town- 
ship, Hendricks county, and there resided for some time. Later on, however, 
the subject purchased the interests of the others and held the land under his 
own title. When the family purchased the tract in question, there were but 
twelve acres cleared of timber and fit for cultivation. The subject has cleared 
the balance of it and set out a large orchard numbering some two thousand 
trees. These are mostly apple, but there are a few specimens of pears and 
cherries. He also carries on general farming on a tract of one hundred and 
sixty acres which he owns and which lays partly in Lincoln and partly in 
Washington townships. He also owns a farm of two hundred and five acres 
north of Clermont, Marion county. In his earlier days he did considerable 
gardening and has attended the city market of Indianapolis from the time he 
was eight years old and has the distinction of being the oldest attendant on 
market in point of years of service. At one time he handled cut and potted 
flowers, also live and dressed poultry, but now confines his effurts mostly to 
fruits, having made for himself an enviable reputation among the patrons of 
the market. 

In June, 1888. Alfred Cox was united in marriage with Anna Anderson, 
who was born at Alilk Creek in Huntingdon county, Pennsylvania. She was 
a daughter of Abner and Catherine (Householder) Anderson, the former of 
whom was of excellent Scotch-English ancestry and the latter of sterling 
German strain. They came to Indiana in the }'ear 1S70 and located at 
Knightstown, where they remained for a year and then moved to Indianapolis 
where the father passed the remainder of his life, his death occurring about 
1873. In early life he had been a farmer, but later took up carpentry. His 
widow still resides in Indianapolis on Beville avenue and is enjoying good 
health and clear faculties at the advanced age of seventy-eight. 

Mr. Cox's religious affiliation is with the Methodist Episcopal church, of 
which he is a consistent member, giving of his time and means to further its 
good works. His fraternal affiliation is with the Independent Order of Odd 
Fellows, of which he has been a member for a number of years in the local 
lodge at Brownsburg. Mr. and Mrs. Cox have an attractive and comfortable 
home in Lincoln township, the excellent condition of the farm land attesting 
the thoroughness of the owner, while the air of the home is that of genuine 
hospitality. Throughout his life, Mr. Cox has shown himself entirelv worthv 
of the high esteem in which he is held. His life has been filled with activity 
and usefulness, while his untiring energy and ability have secured him a 
(51) 



802 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

conspicuous place among the citizens of his community. In 191 1 Mr. Cox 
agitated the proposition of good roads in Lincohi township and secured a suc- 
cessful petition for an improved road running two and a half miles south 
from Brownsburg, thence two and a half miles east; also three miles on the 
county line, running north from the Crawfordsville road. When it was 
decided to build the roads, he was made superintendent of the work. His 
strict integrity and unpretending bearing have elevated him in the confidence 
of his fellow citizens and his influence has alwa3's l^een exerted in the interests 
of those things which help to elevate his fellowmen in any way. 



MEL-VIN AND MELVINA HARPER. 

Descendants from an old and honorable pioneer family of this county, 
Melvin Harper and his sister Eva are among the most highly honored and 
respected citizens of Eel River township. Their father was a gallant veteran 
of the Civil War, who died in the service of his country during that terrible 
conflict. The Harper family came originally from Virginia in the early his- 
tory of the state and have numbered many worthy descendants since crossing 
the Alleghanies. William Forrest Harper, the first one of the family to be 
born in this county, was born near New Winchester. March 4, 1836, and died 
July 22, 1865, in Pulaski, Tennessee. The father of W. F. Harper was a 
native of Virginia, who came to Kentucky and married a girl by the name of 
Harper, but no relation to his parents or the family. The young couple came 
from Kentucky to this county on horseback and about eight years after settling 
in this county the father of W. F. Harper died, leaving his widow and seVen 
sens. The widow never remarried, but remained on the farm with her chil- 
dren, where all seven of whom grew to manhood. In 1878 the mother of W. 
F. Flarper went to Mitchell, Indiana, to live with one of her sons. 

William F. Harper was reared to manhood at New Winchester, although 
he spent a year or two in Kansas before the war. He was married February 
3, 1858, to Sarah E. Christy, a native of Putnam county and the daughter of 
William and Julian (Buntain) Christy. William Christy was born in Mon- 
roe county, Virginia, August 7, 1816, and died in Putnam county, Indiana, 
JMarch 27. 1889. He came to Indiana when a small boy with his parents, 
James and Elizabeth Christy, and lived for a short time in Hancock countv. 
Later his parents moved to the eastern part of Putnam county, whce he spent 
most of his life. W'illiam Christy was married January 13, ^'^y-y, to fulian 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



803 



Bnntain, the danj^^bter of William and Leannah Buntain. Julian Buntain 
was born in Mercer county. Kentucky, December 8. 18 14, and came to Indiana 
with her parents when a child. She was an earnest Christian from the age 
of eighteen, when she united with the Cumberland and Presbyterian church 
near New Winchester. Afterward she became a member of the Baptist church 
at Bethel. She died June 13. 1905, at the advanced age of ninety. William 
Christy was reared by pious parents and early in life joined the Methudist 
Episcopal church and in 1848 united with the Missionary Baptist church at 
Bethel in Putnam county, after which he decided to enter the ministry and 
was ordained in 1870 and continued to be an active minister until his death. 

After William F. Harper married in 1858. he started farming on his 
wife's father's farm southwest of Coatesville, and remained there until he 
enlisted in the Civil W^ar in 1865 except two years on a farm that he owned 
just north of New Winchester. He enlisted in Company K. One Hundred 
and Fortv-eighth Regiment of Indiana \^olunteer Infantry, on February 15. 
i86s and died m Pulaski. Tennessee, July 22. 1865. He was endeared to 
all who knew him and a man who led an upright Christian life in every way. 
He left a widow and two children, Melvin Carey and Melvina Exa, whose 
careers are set forth in this connection. 

After the death of William F. Harper, his widow married Hiram T. 
Storm on December 25. 1867, and made their home four miles northeast of 
North Salem, the place now occupied by Melvin C. and his sister Eva. To 
this '.econd marriage have been born four children, only one of whom is living. 
Orville Storm. Mrs. Storm, the mother of Melvin C. Harper and his sister, 
died April 28, 1912, at the age of seventy-three. Some years after her mar- 
riao-e to Mr Storm, she left the Baptist church, since there was none near her 
home, and united with the Christian church and remained an earnest member 
of that denomination until her death. 

Melvin Carev Harper, the son of William F. Harper and Sarah Eliza- 
beth Christv, was born August 14. 1862, near New Winchester in this county. 
^^•hen he was five vears of age his mother remarried and she and her family 
then moved to his present farm. At the age of eleven his stepfather was 
elected treasurer of Hendricks county and for the next five years Melvin C. 
and his sister lived in Danville, where they attended school. After finishing 
the hi-h school at Danville. Melvin entered DePauw University at Green- 
castle " \t the age of twenty-two he went to Kansas and entered a govern- 
ment claim in Comanche county, forty-five miles from a railroad, and started 
in to improve his claim. When he went to Kansas, his sister Eva went with 
him and thev lived there together on his claim for seven and one-halt years. 



8o4 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Thev then came back to North Salem and lived upon the farm where they are 
now residing. Neither brother or sister has ever married, but have lived for 
each other through all these years, since the death of their father in the Civil 
\Var. 

Melvina Eva, the sister of Melvin, is a finely educated woman. She 
attended the State Normal School at Terre Haute for two years and has spent 
several years in teaching. She taught five years before going to Kansas with 
her brother and taught seven years while they were living in Kansas. When 
they returned to this county she taught three years more, but several years 
ago retired from teaching and is now living with her brother on the farm. 
They have one hundred and fifty-five acres of fine farming land and Mr. 
Harper owns eighty acres in Marion township. He was a Repul)lican up until 
the fall of 1912, when' he allied himself with the new Progressive party. Mr. 
Harper is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at North Salem 
and he and his sister both belong to the Daughters of Rebekah and the 
Christian church. She is also a member of the Woman's Relief Ccjrps at 
Lizton. She is also a member of the "Lawrence School Girls," an organiza- 
tion of ladies who attended the Danville public school during the years of 1873- 
1875. This worthy couple have lived lives of usefulness in this county and 
their influence has always been found on the right side of all public questions 
which affected the welfare of their community in any way. They have many 
warm friends in the township, who esteem them for their many good qualities. 



CHARLES F. MARTIN. 



Realizing that every day is a fresh beginning and that every morning 
the world is made new, Charles F. Martin, of Jamestown and Eel River 
township, is too well known to the people of Hendricks and surrounding 
counties as a financier and farmer to need any formal introduction here. He 
forged his way to the front, from a beginning none too auspicious, by courage- 
ously removing, one by one, the obstacles he found in life's pathway, for he 
was well aware that clearly defined purpose and consecutive effort in the 
affairs of life will inevitably result in the attainment of a due measure of 
success. In following out the career of one who has achieved the co\'eted 
goal by his own efforts there comes into view the intrinsic individuality 
which made such accomplishment possible, and thus there is gained an in- 
centive and inspiration, while at the same time there is enkindled a feeling of 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 805 

respect and admiration. The qnalities which have made Mr. Alartin one of 
the prominent and successful men of this locahty have also brought him the 
esteem of his fellow men. for his career has been one of well-directed energy, 
strong determination and honorable methods. 

Charles F. Martin, president of the Citizens State Bank of Jamestown, 
and prosperous farmer of Eel River township, was born on August 20, 185 1, 
in this township, on the farm where he is now residing. His parents were 
Levi and Emmeline ( Fullen) Martin. Levi Alartin was born in Union 
county, Indiana, on March 10. j 826. and was the son of James and Mary 
(Hendricks) Martin. Levi Martin came to Hendricks county in 1833 with 
his parents, who purchased land near where Charles F. is now living and 
remained there until their deaths, James Martin's death occurring in 1849. 
Levi Martin grew to manhood on the home farm and married Emmeline 
Fullen. who was born in this county and was the daughter of Charles' and 
Sarah (Lawson) Fullen, early settlers in this locality. 

Charles F. Martin grew up on the farm and enjoyed such educational 
advantages as were afforded by his home schools and later was given an 
academic and commercial course at Indianapolis. Returning to this county, 
he taught school for three years and then engaged in farming, and has lived 
the life of a farmer ever since. He has been very successful as an agricul- 
turist and is now the owner of three hundred and fifty acres of land which 
he has improved and brought to a high state of producti^'ity. In addition to 
his landed interests, he is one of the stockholders and organizers of the 
Citizens State Bank of Jamestown, which bank was organized in June. 1903, 
with a capital stock of thirty thousand dollars. In 19 13 the net profits of the 
bank were ten thousand dollars, with deposits amounting to nearly two hun- 
dred thousand dollars. Mr. Martin has been president of the bank from the 
time of its organization and has had the satisfaction of seeing it grow in 
strength and enlarge its usefulness to the community. \\'hile iMr. Martin has 
been busy w4th his financial and agricultural interests he has^not neglected his 
duty as a citizen of the township. In 1888 he was elected on the Republican 
ticket to the office of trustee of his home township and filled this responsible 
office to the entire satisfaction of his fellow citizens, irrespective of party. 

Mr. Martin was married in 1880 to INIiranda Frances Tucker, of Eel 
River township, the daughter of Dandridge Tucker and a sister to Nathan 
and David Tucker, whose biographies are given elsewhere in this volume. 
Mr. and Mrs. Martin are the parents of five children, Paul. Levi Lawson, 
Charles Russell. Maude and Emma Catherine. Paul. Maude and Emma have 
been students of Butler College at Indianapolis and Emma graduated in 191 1. 



8o6 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Lawson gracliiated from riirdue University in igro, and Russell graduated 
from the agricultural department of that institution in 19 14. Paul is now 
assisting his father on the farm. Lawson is principal of the schools at 
Darlington. Indiana. Maude has charge of the musical department of Hazel 
Green Academy, at Hazel Green, Kentucky ; Emma is principal of the public 
schools at Mace, Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. Martin are justly proud of their 
children, who have been given the advantages of the best educational institu- 
tions of the state and are filling useful places in society. 

Mr. and Mrs. Martin have a beautiful country home one mile east of 
Jamestown, on the interurl:)an line betv.een Indianapolis and Crawfords\ille. 
Mr. Martin is equally at home on the farm, in the bank and in all the 
activities of his community. He is an obliging, courteous, public-spirited and 
progressive man. w.ho has performed useful service to his community and is 
rightly regarded as one of the most progressive men of his township. 



REV. WALTER M. BENSON. 

Among tlie men of Hendricks county who hax'e 1)een potent factors for 
good, there is no one who occupies a more i^romincnt position than Rev. \V. 
M.. Benson. T'or n.iore than a score of years he was a public school teacher in 
various counties in the state and for the past thirty-hve years has been in 
charge of the Baptist church of North Salem and other Baptist churches in 
this section of the state. In addition to his teaching and ministerial work, 
he has also found time to engage in farming. It would be impossible to esti- 
mate the beneficent iniluence which has followed Iiis work in all of these lines 
of activity. I'cr nu^-e than forty years he has been a resident of this c junt) 
and in all that time lie has ne\'er neglected an opportnniiy to sei"\'e his fellow 
n:en. 

Rev. Walter M. Benson, the son of John Harley and Alary Ellen (Minor) 
Benson, was born in 1833 in Pendleton county, Kentucky. He was two years 
of age when his parents moved to this state, where his father entered land in 
Rush county and lived there the remainder of his life. Walter Benson lived 
on the home farm until he was twenty years of age and then taught school 
in Rush count}- for three years. He secured his education in the subscrip- 
tion schools and then attended Fair\'iew College, an institution of learning on 
the line of Rush and Fayette counties, which was presided over by A. R. 
Benton and Rew V^an Buskirk, the two famous educators of earlv Indiana. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. °7 

In ,856 Walter Benson ,noved .0 the sotuhern part of ^I^''"" ^°""'^: "!"; 
he Johnson eounty line, and for the next twelve years tanght n Hanon 
ZL and followe'd th.s w.th si. ^e- of teachlng^^^^^^^ cotntty .^ . tv 

.r^- rQ r.t the time he was teaching m Marion county rie ndu 
Ltrh^l^and only recently Rev Benso.t had th..^.^^^^^^^ 
tnrc in that locaHtv and met a number ot the old people oi tne ^ 
ro':::re .. ,.,^s my years a,o. While te^ch.ng -n Manon ^^^^^^^^^^ 
also served as eounty trustee for two ternis, while at the same 

^^^'Ref™e,tfcarto Hendr.c.s county in October. .869. and bought 
a farm a * rt distance southeast of Xorth Salem in Eel Rtver townsh, . 

: North L^ ' a^for tw^ntv-five years had charge of three other ehur^es 

a man of wonderful phys.que, ^^ h«' "^^ ^^ ,j „f ,t,e fact that he 

"-^■^ofXtt:::: htZr ,:." "i' a": ir:,. age of sl^een has 
heirable. tHr: few years ago, to husk three rows while the ordinary man 
was hvtsking two ^^ ^^^^ ^,^^^^^^^^ ^^., , 

In 18,/ R^:- f "^0",;^^ the dau<.hter of Tames and Sarah (Tucker) 
born and reared m Manon count) . the dau me 

Vandever. She was one « «; ^J^^ ^ ^^ ^ : f^l ,„, ^.ading 
house in Manon countv, a- ''^ ^^ ^ " ,;^.;^ ,„ ,,„,,,t, her golden 
continued through more than httv > a s^ She ^^^^^ ^^^^^^ 

wedding anttiversary ,n ,907 ^J^^^^lZ^n in manv'ways, well 
dytng March ,6, tgta Sb^ s - ^^^,,^^^ ^„, , „ ,„ ^er husband 
versed m the Scrip e^ctetr ad ^^.^^^^_^ ^^^^^ ^^^^ ^^ ^^^^^ ^^.^ 

:;:::.. Hor A ^"e trance man of Indianapolis, who married Jennie 



8o8 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Miller, of Fayette county, and has one son, Neal : Mary E., the wife of J. S. 
Davis, of Gosport, has two children. Minor and Clarence; Hattie E., the wife 
of A. B. Daven])ort, a farmer of this county, has eight children, Herschel, 
Alberta, Edith. Maurice, Mary, Thelma, Frank and Beatrice ; Eva Gertrude, 
the youngest child of Mr. and Mrs. Benson, is the wife of Everett Gregory, 
of Gosport, and has two children. Honor and Marion. 

This biography is but a feeble tribute to the wonderful amount of good 
which has been accomplished by Rev. Benson. He is a typical man of 
wonderful strength and energy, who can do many things, and do them all 
well. As a teacher, as a minister of the gospel, as a public official and as a 
private citizen, he has taken his share of the burdens of the community. He 
is a man who has always been trying to serve his fellow men. As a student 
of the Bible, he has few ecpials, has a wonderful memory and knows a large 
part of the Bible by -heart and can repeat chapter after chapter without the 
slightest hesitation. He is a man of imposing appearance, tall, well built and 
with a personality which endears him to all who come in touch with him. 



WILLIAM FRANKLIN PAGE. 

There is no more up-to-date farmer or public-spirited citizen in Eel 
River township, Hendricks county, Indiana, than William Franklin Page, a 
man who has won success in his chosen line of endeavor, because he has 
worked for it along legitimate lines and has dealt fairly with his fellow men. 

William Franklin Page, the son of Jeremiah J. Page and wife, was born 
September 29, 1865, in Putnam county near the Hendricks county line. The 
Page family history is recorded in the biography of Jeremiah J. Page, else- 
where in this volume. 

William F. Page remained on the home farm until his marriage. He 
received a good common school education, and from his father learned all the 
finer points in agriculture. On October 10, 1893, Mr. Page married Ora 
Carpenter, the daughter of Fielding J. and Eline (Smith) Carpenter. Field- 
ing J. Carpenter was born February i, 1854, in Morgan county, Indiana, the 
son of Felden and Sally (Leathers) Carpenter. Felden Carpenter came to 
Indiana in boyhood and settled in Morgan county among the first settlers of 
the county. Sally Leathers also came from the same part of Kentucky and 
settled with her parents in M^organ county. Felden Carpenter farmed all of 
his life as did his father, Daniel, before him. Fielding J. Carpenter grew up 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 809 

on the home farm in Morgan county and in 1875 married Ehne Smith, who 
was born and reared in Wabash county, Indiana, the daughter of Benjamin 
and Sally Smith. In 1876 Mr. and Mrs. Carpenter moved to Hendricks 
county and lived here ever since except two years' residence in Montgomery 
county. Mr. Carpenter's first wife died January 21, 1891, leaving six chil- 
dren, Cora, Ora. Edgar, Cleveland, Alta Opal and an infant, deceased. Mr. 
Carpenter was married on October 18, 1891, to Ella Soots, daughter of John 
and Mary Adeline (Newman) Soots, of Eel River township. Her parents 
were both reared in this county. To this second marriage of Mr. Carpenter 
have been born six children : Verley Esther, deceased ; Hazel Fern ; Edith 
Marie ; Cecil Dewey, deceased ; Herndon and Victor Hugo. 

Before his marriage Mr. Page had been farming the land where he now 
lives and after his marriage he built a home and has since resided there. He 
has one hundred and twenty-five acres of excellent farming land which he 
has brought to a high .state of cultivation. While he carries on a general farm- 
ing, he has made a specialty of raising Poland China hogs and has been very 
successful on this line. 

Mr. and Mrs. Page are the parents of two living children, Estal, born 
February 18, 1903, and Dorothy May. born November 22, 191 1, while Nina 
Esther and an infant are deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Page are both members of 
the Christian church and give it earnest support. Mr. Page is a man who 
is respected by everyone because of his quaint and wholesome life. He and 
his wife number their friends e\'erywhere throughout the communitv. 



WILLL\M H. ROBBINS. 



There are certain characteristics which are always prominent in successful 
men, and among these perseverance and sterling worth are always to be found. 
William H. Robbins affords a fine example of the successful, self-made man, 
who has the necessary talents and forcefulness which have made him suc- 
cessful as a man of the world. His career shows that he has a versatility 
which is not possessed by every one. During the course of a long and busy 
career he has been a farmer, a carpenter, a stone mason, a merchant and an 
undertaker, and, what is more remarkable, he has made a success at each call- 
ing. However, his career has been pre-eminently that of a farmer, and in 
this vocation he has made his greatest success. He is a man of strong fiber 
and vigorous mentality and has earned high words of commendation from 



8lO HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

those competent to form a correct estimate of the man and his accomphsh- 
ments. 

Wilham H. Robbins. the son of Lamech and Emily (Blanton) Robbins, 
was born December 5, 1849, in Eel River township, this county. His father 
was born in North Carolina in 1820, the son of Jacob Robbins. Jacob Rob- 
bins, with his family, came to this county when Lamech was a small boy, 
settling on a farm in the southern part of Eel River township. Here Jacob 
Robbins purchased a farm and here he continued to reside the rest of his life, 
and here his son, Lamech, grew to manhood. Upon reaching his majority he 
married Emily Blanton, who was born near Crab Orchard, Kentucky, and 
came to this county with her parents when a small girl. After his marriage, 
Lamech Robbins bought forty acres of land east of Montclair, this state, and 
following that lived four years in Iowa. Upon his return to this county 
he bought a farm three miles east of North Salem, but later sold this tract 
and, in 1894, bought one hundred and sixty acres two miles west of North 
Salem. His first wife died during the latter part of the eighties, and some 
time later he married Delilah Blanton, the widow of John Blanton, who was 
a brother of his first wife, and after his second marriage he moved one-half 
mile east of North Salem, where he lived until three years before his death. 
He was compelled to retire from the farm on account of a severe stroke of 
paralysis and spent his remaining days in North Salem. Mr. and Mrs. 
Lamech Robbins were the parents of eleven children, eight of whom grew to 
maturity, although there are only four of them now living: Erances, the wife 
of David Henry, of Jamestown ; William H. ; James, of Roachdale, Indiana, 
and Jacob, a farmer of this township. 

William H. Robbins lived on the home farm until his marriage, and in 
1873 married Mary Page, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Jeremiah Page, whose 
familv history appears elsewhere in this volume. She was born in Jackson 
township, Putnam county, Indiana, and her parents are still living in this 
township. After his marriage Mr. Robbins began farming on a place adjoin- 
ing his father's farm, his father ha\'ing gi^'en him twenty acres upon his mar- 
riage and from time to time has added to this until he is now the owner of 
eighty-three acres. While he has been a farmer the most of his life, he has 
also, as the opportunity presented itself, been a carpenter and stone mason. 
Since 1903 he has lived in North Salem, where he has been engaged in mercan- 
tile pursuits. 

Mr. and Mrs. Robbins are the parents of four children : Lillie, who died 
in childhood; Oliver, who married Clara Barnard, and lives one mile west of 
Mavsville, where he owns a farm of one hundred acres; Frank is married to 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



8n 



Iva Dodds and lives three and one-half miles northwest of North Salem, 
where he owns a farm of one hundred and ten acres ; they have four children, 
Verle, Nina. Ruby and Irene; Myrtle is the wife of Samuel Kent, a grocer of 
North Salem, and has one daughter, Inez. 

Mr. Robbins was a Republican until the fall of 1912. when he cast his 
political lot with the Progressive party. He and his wife are members of the 
Christian church and give to it their earnest support. Mr. Robbnis has a 
wide acquaintance throughout the county and is popular with all classes of 
people. He is friendly and congenial by nature and frank in his manner and 
has a personality which easily wins and retains friends. He is a man of 
sterling qualities of character and commendable habits, and his influence for 
good has been the most prominent characteristic of his life in this community. 
He has always believed in assisting others while working for his own advance- 
ment and is sympathetically in favor of all worthy public enterprises. 



OLIVER W. TROTTER. 

The best history of a state or county is the one that deals most with the 
lives and activities of its people, especially of those who. by their own endeav- 
ors and indomitable energv, have forged to the front and placed themselves 
where thev deserve the title of progressive men. In this brief review will be 
found the record of one who has outstripped the less active plodders on the 
highwav of life and among his contemporaries has achieved marked success 
m the business world, the name of Oliver W. Trotter being honored by all 
owing to his upright life and habits of thrift and industry. 

Oliver W. Trotter, of the firm of Trotter Brothers, of North Salem, was 
born in Eel River township, this county, in 1865. the son of William W. and 
Nancy E. (Keith) Trotter, who are represented elsewhere in this work. 

Oliver W. Trotter was given a good, common-school education and lived 
on the home farm until 1898. He then began working in the dry goods store 
of Moore & Fleece, of North Salem, where he was employed for some years. 
He then entered the employ of J. W. Sparks, remaining with him until 1907, 
when he and his brother. Silas B.. bought the store of Bymaster & Company, 
which they have continued to operate since that time. 

Mr. Trotter was married in 1903 to Mamie Conover, the daughter of 
John D. and Ellen (Weible) Conover. Mrs. Trotter's mother was born in 
Cape May county. New Jersey, in 183 1. the daughter of Thomas and Mary 



1 



8l2 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

Anil (Heritage) Weible. In 1840 her parents moved to New Albany, in llns 
state, where thev hved until 1870. Her father was a boat-bnilder in the ship 
yards there. Jn 1853 Mrs. Trotter's mother was married to Samuel Conover. 
the son of J. D. and Soffronia Conover. Samuel Conover was engaged in 
clerical and commercial work at New Albany, and his death occurred there in 
1861, leaving his widow with three small children, William, Walter and Lydia. 
William lives in Indianapolis; Walter died in his seventeenth year and Mrs. 
Lydia Walker lives in North Salem. Some years after her husband's death, 
Mrs. Conover married John Cono\'er, of Ohio, a steamboat man on the river. 
In 1870 they established their home at North Salem, in this county, and Mr. 
Conover continued to work on the river as captain of a steamboat until several 
years later, when he retired from active work and permanently settled at 
North Salem, where he lived until his death in 1882. To the second marriage 
of Mrs. Conover there was one daughter born, Mamie E., now the wife of 
Oliver Trotter. In 1887 Mrs. Conover married John W. Clements, a native 
of Kentucky and long a resident of North Salem. He was a soldier in the 
Civil War in Company C, Seventh Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and 
ser^•ed three full vears in the war, after which he lived the life of a farmer 
in this county until his death, which occurred in North Salem, March 24, 
1905. Since her husband's death, Mrs. Clements has continued to reside in 
North Salem, and now enjoys good health, despite her advanced age of 
eighty-two years. 

Mr. Trotter has made his way in life by force of his own merit and in- 
dustry from a small beginning to a place of comparative success. He is a 
man of absolute honesty, always on the advance and has managed his share 
of business with a skill and prudence which comes of a practical knowledge 
of the various branches of the business. 



THOMAS C. DAVIS. 



Judging from the success that has attended the efforts of Thomas C 
Davis, one of Hendricks county's leading farmers, he got a proper start in 
life and. although he has made some mistakes, yet he is today one of the 
splendid examples of our modern farmers. Much, if not all. depends upon 
the start in the battle of life, just as in the beginning of a race. The horse 
that gets the best start, all other things being equal, will almost invariably 
win. Realizing at the outset of his career that it took indomitable courage, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 813 

unfaltering integrity and unfailing industry to achieve the best results, Mr. 
Davis began shaping his course gauged by proper ideals and is today emi- 
nently deserving of the reward that has so lavishly attended his efforts. 

Thomas C. Davis, the son of Walter and Mary (Scott) Davis, was born 
June 15, 1 87 1, about two miles east of North Salem, in this county. The 
history of the Davis family is fully portrayed in the sketch of Ouincy A. 
Davis, which will be found elsewhere in this work. 

Thomas C. Davis grew to manhood on the farm where he was born and 
received his education in the schools of his home township. He was married 
on February 28, 1892, to Ella C. Leach, the daughter of James M. and Eliza- 
beth (Hamilton) Leach. James i\L Leach was born in Hendricks county, 
February 9, 1834, the son of Enos and Elizabeth Leach, who were both 
natives of Kentucky. Enos Leach and his wife came to Lidiana from Ken- 
tucky in 1 83 1 and entered two hundred acres of government land in Union 
township, this count}'. James M. was one of seven children born to his par- 
ents, and grew to manhood in this county. He married Elizabeth Hamilton, 
March 17, 1859. She was the daughter of Abraham Hamilton, of this county. 
James M. Leach is one of the leading farmers of the county. He and his wife 
are loyal members of the Christian church and Mr. Leach has served as an 
elder in that denomination for many years. 

After Mr. Davis was married he engaged in farming for himself on 
eighty acres which he had bought south of Montclair, in Union township. In 
1893 he moved to his present home, two miles east of North Salem, where he 
bought one hundred and sixty acres of land. He has within the past twenty 
years made extensive improvements on his farm in the way of rebuilding his 
house, erecting a new barn, outbuildings and fencing of various kinds. Suc- 
cess has come to him as a reward of his efforts and from time to time has been 
able to add to his holdings until he is now the owner of two hundred and 
seventy-seven and one-half acres in this township. 

Mr. and Mrs. Davis are the parents of two children. Jewel, born April 
28, 1893, who died when she was about six months of age, and Mamie L., who 
was born February 2^, 1895, who is still at home with her parents. All the 
family are members of the Methodist Episcopal church of North Salem and 
earnest in their support of that denomination. ]\Ir. Davis is a Republican 
and takes an intelligent interest in the affairs of his party. He has served 
several years on the advisory board of his township, a place of honor and 
trust which carries with it a salary of only fi^•e dollars per year. This posi- 
tion was a tribute to him as a public-spirited ccitizen, since it came to him un- 
souoht and shows the confidence which his fellow citizens had in his abilitv 



8l4 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

and integrity. He has one of the finest sugar camps in the township. He 
carries on general mixed farming, giving attention to both Hve stock and 
grain. 



MICHAEL FELIX HESSION. 

It is not an easy task to describe adequately a man who has led an 
eminently active and busy life and who has attained a position of relative dis- 
tinction in the community with which his interests are allied. But biography 
finds its most perfect justification, nevertheless, in the tracing and recording 
of such a career. It is, then, with a full appreciation of all that is demanded 
and of the painstaking scrutiny that must be accorded each statement, and yet 
with a feeling of satisfaction, that the writer essays the task of touching briefly 
upon the details of such a record as has been that of the respected subject 
whose life now comes under review. 

Michael Felix Hession, v.ho in many respects is one of the most promi- 
nent citizens of Brown township, Hendricks county, Indiana, \\3.s born on a 
farm in Boone county, this state, on September 15, 1868, the son of Michael 
and Catherine (Hogan) Hession, both of whom came from county Galway. 
Ireland. Both remained on the "old sod" until grown, when each came to 
this country and direct to Indianapolis, where they were married. Soon after 
their marriage they came to this county and purchased a farm in the eastern 
part of Brown township, where they lived for four or five years, when they 
traded that tract of land for eighty acres in Boone county, where they passed 
the remainder of their lives. Michael Hession died January i. 1903, his 
wife having preceded him in June, 1891. They reared a family of eight 
children, among them being the subject of this sketch. 

Michael F. Hession remained under the parental roof until the time of 
his marriage in 1894 to Sarah Mullin, daughter of Patrick and Mary (Tarpy ) 
Mullin, both of whom emigrated from county Galway, Ireland. Mary Tarpy 
was left an orphan when but ten or twelve years old and soon thereafter took 
the long journey to this country alone. She made her home with various 
families until the time of her marriage to Patrick Mullin. After their mar- 
riage, they purchased a tract of forty acres in the eastern part of Brown 
township, this county, where they made their home for some fifteen or twenty 
years, and here it was that their daughter Sarah, wife of the subject of this 
sketch, was born. In 1879, Mr. ^lullin Ijought eighty acres of land in r»kliddle 
township, on the Hendricks-Boone county line, retaining the original forty 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



815 



acres, and the following year he moved to his new farm and resided there at 
the time of his death in 1891. Mrs. Mullin passed away m 1888. They 
had a family of eight or nine children, of whom but three are livmg. The 
dau-hter Sarah, continued to reside at home until the time of her marriage 
to the subject, and thev afterwards lived for seven years on this same farm 
After disposing of it, they purchased their present farm of one hundred and 
twenty-seven acres, three miles north of Brownsburg. In addition to this, 
Mr Hession also owns a farm of forty acres in Boone county, being land 
which his father gave him at the time of his marriage. Mr. Hession carries 
on -eneral farming and other lines incident thereto and is thorough and up- 
to-dlite in his methods. Mr. and Mrs. Hession have an interesting family ot 
five children, namely: Mary Catherine, Theresa Marguerite, Thomas Leo, 
Esther Helena and Elizabeth Winifred. There is also one child dead. 

Politically, Mr. Hession has always been identified with the Democratic 
party and. while not taking an active part in its affairs, has ever had a quiet 
interest in same. The familv are communicants of the Roman Catholic 
church and are highly esteemed in their community. In the public life of 
the locality, Mr. Hession takes a commendable interest, always being m the 
ranks of those desiring the betterment of the moral and material life of the 
community. His straightforward manner of living has won him an enviable 
place in the regard of those with whom he comes in contact. 



OSCAR H. WISEHEART, M. D. 

.-\mon- those men of sterling attributes of character who have impressed 
their personality upon the community of their residence and have borne iheir 
full share in the upbuilding and development of Hendricks county, mention 
must not be omitted of Dr. Oscar H. Wiseheart, of North Salem, where he 
has long maintained his home and where he has exerted a strong influence 
for -ood on the entire community, being a man of upright prmcii^les and 
desirmis to see the advancement of the community along moral, educaticmal 
and material lines. Professionally, he is a man of recognized ability, who has 
in his chosen sphere of effort met with a large degree of success, winning the 
commendation and the confidence of all who have knowledge of the great 
value of the competent physician to any community. 

Dr Oscar PI Wiseheart, of North Salem, the son of John Douglas and 
Eliza (Clemmons) Wiseheart, was born at Groveland, Putnam county, In- 



8l6 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDI.SNA. 

diana. September 24, 1874. His father, John D. Wiseheart, of North Salem, 
was born in 1840 in Putnam county, the son of John D., Sr., and Mary E. 
(Ryner) Wiseheart. John D. Wiseheart, Sr., was born in Nelson county, 
Kentucky, and in childhood came with his parents, Jacob and Mary Elizabeth 
Wiseheart, to Putnam county, this state, where they entered government land 
near Groveland in the early history of that county and lived and died there. 
Mary E. Ryner was a native of Ohio, the daughter of xVdam and Martha 
Ryner, and came with her parents to Putnam county, Indiana, where they 
also entered land from the government and lived there the remainder of their 
lives. John D. Wiseheart, Sr., grew to manhood in Putnam county, and in 
1861 married Eliza Jane Clemmons, the daughter of Joseph N. and Caroline 
( Garrett )Clemmons. Joseph Clemmons was born in Maryland, near Hagers- 
town, and after the death of his parents in that state he came to Center town- 
ship and followed -the occupation of a farmer for the rest of his life. Caro- 
line Garrett w^as born in Randolph county. North Carolina, the daughter of 
Caleb and Mary Garrett. Caleb Garrett was a physician who came to Salem, 
Indiana, and moA-ed from there to Danville, in this county, where his death 
occurred. Plis daughter, Caroline, lived in Danville until her marriage to 
Joseph Clemmons. 

After his marriage John D. Wiseheart, Jr., lived for a short time on his 
father's farm and in 1862 volunteered as a soldier, but was refused because of 
physical disability. A year later he again volunteered and because there was a 
dearth of men he was accepted as a member of Company H, Eleventh Regi- 
ment Indiana Volunteer Infantry. The company was sent to Baltimore, where 
they were stationed in the forts surrounding that city. Here he served one year 
and then mustered out, immediately after which he returned to Indiana, and 
he and his wife moved to Iowa, where they lived for a year and a half. They 
then sold their farm and returned to Indiana, purchasing a farm four and one- 
half miles from North Salem, and on this farm of one hundred and fifty 
acres they lived until the fall of 1904, when they moved into North Salem 
and retired from active life. Mr. and IMrs. Wiseheart are both active mem- 
bers of the Presbyterian church in New Winchester. They have reared a 
family of five children: William H., a physician of Colfax, Indiana, who 
married Lillian Crose. and has one daughter. Nina ; Effie. who died on reach- 
ing womanhood: Dr. Oscar H.. whose history follows; Letitia is the wife of 
L. A. Wliitenack, of Portland, Oregon, and she has one son, Clifford, and 
Victor H., who died in 191 1, at the age of twenty-six. His wife. Catherine 
Cameron, died four months after their marriage. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 817 

Dr. Oscar H. W'iseheart grew up on his father's farm in Clarion town- 
ship, and after completing the course in the common schools he entered the 
Central Normal College at Danville, and later the Kentucky School of Aledi- 
cine at Louisville. Kentucky, graduating in 1898. Immediately after his 
graduation, he began the active practice of his profession at Xorth Salem and 
has continued in the practice there for the past sixteen years. Doctor Wise- 
heart has built up a very lucrative and satisfactory practice in his town and 
vicinity and has been very successful as a general practitioner. 

Doctor Wiseheart was married in 1899 to Eva Morton Hadley. the 
daughter of Gillam and Harriett (Kissler) Hadley, of Eel River township, 
this county, and to this union have been born two children, Harriett Louise 
and Robert Hadley. Doctor Wiseheart and his wife are members of the 
Presbyterian church and he is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons in 
X'orth Salem. He is the oldest physician in years of practice at Xorth Salem 
and has succeeded in Ijuilding up an enviable reputation as a physician who 
keeps fully abreast of the times in every particular. Doctor Wiseheart is a man 
whose heart is in his profession and never fails to respond to the call of the 
sick and suffering. He is a man of character, of stern honesty and one who 
inspires that confidence which is as necessary to the patient as are the medi- 
cines which are gi^"en by the physician. His personality is pleasing and the 
deep sympathy which he feels for his patients endears him to them and thus 
renders him the more efficient in his services. He and his wife move in the best 
social circles of the town and vicinity and are deservedly popular among all 
classes. 



CALVLX STOUT. 



The Stout family have been in Hendricks county for the past threescore 
and se^'en years. Samuel Stout, the grandfather of Calvin Stout, whose 
history is portrayed in this sketch, was born in North Carolina in the year 
iSco, the same year in which Indiana territory was carved out of the North- 
west territory. Samuel Stout married in North Carolina and came to this 
county in 1837, with his family, consisting of his wife and two sons, William 
H., the father of Calvin and Luther. William H. was born September 15, 
1849, "1 this county and died in 1896, his father, Samuel, the grandfather of 
Calvin, dying on October 4, 1S75, in this county. William H. Stout was mar- 
ried on March 21, 1872, to ]\lartha M. Curtis, who was born March 28, 1853. 
(52) 



8l8 HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 

in Morgan county. Indiana. She was the daughter of Cahin and Rosa 
(York) Curtis. Martha, the wife of Wilham H. Stout, died June 8, 1910, 
on the old home farm. 

Calvin Stout was born h\^hruary 13, 1873, and si)ent his boyhood days on 
his father's farm. In 1896 he moved to his present farm where he is now 
operating one hundred and forty-six acres. He follows a general system of 
farming. He has a nice country home and has his farm improved with good 
outbuildings. 

Mr. Stout was married August 30, 1895, to Mary Edna Milhon. who was 
born on May 17, 1877, the daughter of George W. and Susan Catherine 
(Richardson) Milhon. The history of George W. Milhon, which is found 
elsewhere in this volume, gives the ancestry of this family. Mr. and Mrs. 
Stout have one daughter, Lenore Magdalene, who was born on July 22, 1902. 



JAMES S. DODDS. 

Although the biography of the substantial citizen which is here presented 
is only the plain story of a farmer, yet it contains many incidents which will 
be interesting to the general public and especially to the many descendants 
of the honored subject. While James S. Dodds has been a resident of Hend- 
ricks county only a very short time, nevertheless his interests have been closely 
identified with this county and with the town of North Salem, where he has 
been doing much of his business for a long time. 

James S. Dodds was born in Garrett county, Kentucky, on January 17, 
1845. and is now living a retired life in North Salem, Hendricks county, 
Indiana, having moved there m the fall of 191 3. He is the son of Samuel 
and Margaret E. (Ramsey) Dodds, both of whom were natives of Kentucky 
and who came to Putnam county, Indiana, when he was a child of five years, 
and located in Jackson township, where his father bought a farm and spent 
the remainder of his life. 

James S. Dodds grew to manhood on his father's farm and when he was 
eighteen years of age he enlisted, in July, 1863, in Company I, One Hun- 
dred Fifteenth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, for service in the 
Union army. His company was attached to the Army of the Cumberland, 
under General Wilcox, and performed guard duty along the Cumberland 
river in Tennessee during all his service. Upon his discharge in February. 
1864, he returned to his father's farm in Putnam county, where he remained 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 819 

until his marriage, which occurred in 1867, when he was united to Lizzie 
Case, a native of Putnam county and the daughter of Joseph and Louisa A. 
(Perkins) Case. She died in 1875, leaving one daughter, Ida G., who mar- 
ried John Wilson and whose death occurred in September, 1903. In ]\Iarch. 
1880. Mr. Dodds married Sarah E. Rust, a native of Kentucky and the 
daughter of Matthew and Eliza Ann (Troutman) Rust. She came with her 
parents to Jackson township, Putnam county, Indiana, when she was six 
years of age and lived there until her marriage. To this second marriage 
were born three children, Iva C the wife of Frank Robbins, a farmer of 
Montgomery county, and they have four children, Verlie, Xina, Marie Ruby 
and Irene; Eliza E. is the wife of Lona Page, a farmer of Putnam county, 
who has one daughter, Lottie; Vela V.. the wife of Elza Page, who is a 
brother of Eliza's husband and a farmer of Putnam county, and he and his 
wife are the parents of two children living. James J. and Hazel, one of their 
children dying in infancy. 

Mr. Dodds began farming on rented land in 1867, at the time of his 
first marriage, and six vears later bought forty acres of land in his home town- 
ship, where he lived until he moved to North Salem in 1913. Being a man 
of thrifty and frugal habits and assisted by an economical wife, he was able 
to add to his farm from time to time until he is now the owner of one hun- 
dred and thirty- four acres of fine farming land in Jackson township, Putnam 
county. He has been a life-long farmer and early learned the secrets of 
successful agriculture. He raises all the crops common to this locality and 
has also given a due share of time and attention to the raising and breeding 
of live stock, in the handling of which he has met with splendid success. He 
is a practical, methodical man in all he does and his efforts have been re- 
warded by a due meed of success. 

Mr. Dodds has been a member of the Baptist church at North Salem for 
man}^ years, and is now serving as trustee and deacon in that denomination. 
He was a member of the building committee which repaired the old church 
at North Salem, making it modern in every way. An interesting incident in 
Mr. Dodds' career was his short career in Indianapolis. In 1873 he moved to 
Indianapolis, believing that he was able to live a life more suited to his liking 
in the city, but the panic of that year swept over the country and within a 
very few months he was back on the home farm again and never left it until 
he moved to North Salem last year. He has hosts of friends in North Salem 
and in the township in which he lived for so many years in Putnam county. 
While he has been successful in his private affairs, he has also interested him- 



820 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

self in the welfare of the community, and there is no one in the town of his 
residence who enjoys a greater degree of respect and esteem than does Mr. 
Dodds. 



ARTHUR M. DAVIS. 



The history of the branch of the Davis family w'hich is represented in 
Hendricks county goes back t(j a ])criod which antedates the organization of 
Indiana territory in icSoo. Before the name Indiana was ever coined and 
while George Washington was still in his prime, Evan Davis was born June 8, 
1796, near Raleigh, North Carolina. In that same state, on June 17, 1797, 
w^as born a girl Ijy the name of Rebecca Marshall and in the historic state of 
Xorth Carolina these two children grew to young manhood and young woman- 
hood. They were married when very young and shortly after their marriage 
made the long o\'erland trip from North Carolina to Indiana, and settled in 
Hendricks county a year before the county was organized, in 1822. Evan 
Davis entered six hundred and fort}' acres of land in this county as soon as 
the land was opened by the gOA-ernment for sale, and added to this from time 
to time until, at his death, he was the owner of about two thousand acres of 
excellent land in this county. He died on November 9, 1854, and his wife in 
the 3'ear foll()^^■ing. Evan Davis and two of his neighbors founded the first 
Methodist church in this county, the Salem Camp-meeting church, and con- 
tributed both spiritually and financially to its success. He was a large raiser 
•of stock, principally hogs and cattle, and drove his stock overland to Madison, 
on the Ohio river. He brought the first shorthorned bull into this state and 
introduced this excellent Ijreed of cattle to the farmer. He also raised sheep 
and the wool from his own sheep made the clothing for the family. In North 
Carolina Evan Davis owned slaves, but the girl he married was a Quaker and 
she was \'ery much opposed to slavery. When they were married he promised 
to free all of his slaves, and before they left North Carolina for Indiana he 
gave them their freedom. Evan Davis built the first grist-mill in this county 
and later built two others, but none of them are now standing. He laid out 
the first graveyard in the county on his own farm and called it the Davis 
graveyard. At first it was devoted to the immediate family and relatives, but 
later charity bodies were allowed to be placed in the gra\'e}'ard, through the 
courtesy of Mr. Davis. He was a Democrat in politics, but never held office; 
he w\as a power spiritually in his community, and never seemed to weary of 
doing good for his fellow men. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 82 1 

David \\'esley Davis, the father of Arthur M. Davis, whose history is 
here portrayed, received his education in the schools of his township and later 
attended Antioch College, in New York state, where he took a literary course, 
specializing in mental psychology and general literary subjects. He also at- 
tended DePauw University at Greencastle, Indiana, and pursued literary sub- 
jects. David Davis was married September 9, 1858, to Amanda E. Newby. 
and to this marriage were born six children: Alva E., Arthur M., Emmett 
T., Evan B., and two who died in infancy. Upon the outbreak of the Civil 
War, David W. Davis enlisted in Company I, Ninety-ninth Regiment of Indi- 
ana Volunteer Infantry, and served under Sherman and Thomas, participating 
in the famous march to the sea in the summer of 1864. He served through 
the Rebellion with much courage and loyalty and was mustered out of the 
service, without being wounded or having himself impaired. He was a 
charter member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at Belleville. Indi- 
ana, and a member of the Grand Army post at Danville. He is a charter 
mem.ber of the ?\lethodist church at Belleville and has helped to build two or 
three churches in the county. In 1911 Mr. and Mrs. David W. Davis moved 
to Fairhope. Alal^ama, near Mobile, where they are now making their home. 
They celebrated their golden wedding anniversary September 9, 1913, at the 
home of Arthur M. Davis, their son. 

Arthur M. Davis has lived on the old homestead farm all his life with the 
exception of ten years which he spent in Mexico as a mining 
engineer. While in ]\Iexico, he was chosen as general manager of 
a group of silver mines at Parral, and learned the business by hard knocks and 
practical experience. He is an authority on the subject of silver mining, and 
has a great capacity for the detail work which naturally accompanies work of 
this nature. He received a common school education in his home schools and 
later spent one year of study in Germany. This was followed by six years 
of iDractical studv in the mines of this country and Mexico. He came back 
from Mexico and settled on his farm on June 30, 1908, where he is now living 
the quiet life of a farmer. He now farms three hundred and twenty acres, 
the farm being a part of the same which his grandfather entered in 1822. 
Evervthing about his farm is kept in a very attractive manner, showing that 
its owner is a man of discriminating taste and good judgment. He raises a 
great deal of stock and specializes in Duroc hogs and Guernsey cattle, and 
ships much of his stock to distant points. He also raises shorthorn cattle 
and is considered a good judge of all kinds of live stock. 

^Ir. Davis was married August 9, 1905, to Minnie F. Little, the daughter 
of Thomas H. and Louisa A. (Parsons) Little, and to this marriage has been 



822 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

born one son. Arthur Marshall, Jr. Mr. Davis is a member of the Masonic 
fraternity at Plainfield and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at same 
place. In politics, he is a stanch and active Republican and has lent his in- 
fluence to the support of the candidates of that party. The nature of his busi- 
ness has kept him from taking any active part in politics, or aspiring to any 
public position. Mr. Davis is a conservative business man who has proved 
as successful in the farming business as he did in his mining business. He has 
built up a name for himself in the county and township as a man who does 
things. He is w^ell liked by all his neighbors and there is no one in the county 
who is quicker to lend a helping hand in time of trouble than he. and for this 
reason he is justly regarded as one of the representative men of his county. 



DR. HERBERT C. SEARS. 

The life of the distinguished dentist and public-spirited man of 
affairs whose name appears above affords a striking example of well 
defined purpose, with ability to make that purpose subserve not only 
his own ends but the good of his fellow men as well. He has long held 
prestige in a calling which requires for its basis sound mentality, intel- 
lectual discipline of a high order and a thorough mastery of technical 
knowledge with the skill to apply the same. He has had that rigid pro- 
fessional training which has enabled him to stand among the front rank 
of his profession in central Indiana. 

Dr. Herbert C. Sears, the son of R. B. and Sarah F. (Cash) Sears, 
was born in Carrollton, Missouri, January 6, 1878. His parents were 
both natives of Danville, Indiana, where his father followed the profes- 
sion of dentistry for twenty years. Dr. R. B. Sears traveled a great deal 
in his younger days and settled in Danville permanently in 1884, and 
continued in the practice of his profession until his death, which occurred 
June 13. 1909. he and his son practicing the last few years together. 
He was a member of the Presl)yterian church and also a member of the 
Masonic order. He was a veteran of the Civil War, having served for 
four years in the Fourth Indiana Cavalry. The paternal grandfather of 
Dr. FI. C. Sears, who was Wesley B. Sears, came to this state from 
Kentucky, settling in Hendricks county in the early history of the state 
of Indiana. Dr. R. B. Sears and wife were the parents of two children. 
one son (h'ing in infancy, and the other being the immediate subject of 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 823 

this sketch. The widow of Dr. R. B. Sears is now hving in Indianapolis, 
at No. 1560 College avenue. Of the Cash family, there have been six 
generations in Hendricks county. 

Dr. H. C. Sears received his elementary education in the Danville 
schools and took his professional course in the Central Dental College 
at Indianapolis, commencing his active practice in 1900 in his father's 
office, and continued to practice in this office until the summer of 1913, 
since which time he has been in the Hendricks building. In his practice 
he has built up a reputation for good, honest work and has his share 
of the patronage of the county. 

Doctor Sears was married on June 26, 1906, to Ina B. Conn, the 
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Edward Conn, of Danville, and to this union 
there has been born one son. Herbert Edward. Doctor Sears is a mem- 
ber of the Masonic order, belonging to the Royal Arch chapter and the 
council of that order. In politics, he is affiliated with the Republican 
party, but the nature of his profession precludes him from taking an 
active interest in politics. He is a genial and unassuming man, who has 
a large circle of friends and acquaintances throughout the county and is 
rightly considered as one of the representative men of Danville and 
vicinitv. 



ELMER B. ARBUCKLE. 



Among the citizens of Brown township, Hendricks county. Indiana, 
who are engaged in rural pursuits and who believe in following twentieth- 
century methods, is Elmer B. Arbuckle, farmer and stock raiser. He comes 
of a splendid family, one that has always been strong for right living and 
industrious habits, for education and morality, and for all that contributes 
to the welfare of the community. Such people are welcomed anywhere, for 
they are empire builders and as such have pushed the frontier of civilization 
ever westward and onward, leaving the green, wide-reaching wilderness and 
the far-stretching plains populous with contented people and beautiful with 
green fields ; they have constituted that sterling horde which caused the great 
Bishop Whipple to write the memorable line "Westward the course of empire 
takes its way." 

The subject of this sketch was born in Indianapolis, this state, on March 
13, 1875, being the son of Marion and Eliza ( Halloway) Arbuckle, the 
former of whom was also a Hoosier by birth and was the son of John and 



824 HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 

Elizabeth Arbiickle. Eliza Holloway was a daughter of Joseph and Eliza- 
beth Holloway and was united in marriage with Marion Arbuckle on Decem- 
ber ID, 1 87 1. They took up their residence in Indianapolis, where they con- 
tinued to live for some time, when they came to Hendricks county and pur- 
chased a small tract of tiiirteen acres in Brown township. There Marion 
Arbuckle passed the remainder of his life, his death occurring on December 
2, 1879. Mrs. Eliza Arbuckle is still living, residnig in Lebanon, Indiana, 
where she owns her home and lives in comfort. She also possesses a tract of 
some sixty acres in this county, it being just across the highway from the 
holdings of the subject of this sketch. Marion Arbuckle was one of the 
patriotic sons of the Union who went to the front during the dark days of 
the sixties, having been a member of the Fifty-first Regiment Indiana Volun- 
teer Infantry. 

Elmer B. Arbuckle was one of a family of three children and! remained 
at home until the time of his marriage, November 26, 1898, to Naomi Hud- 
dleston, daughter of Fielding and Elizabeth (Patterson) Huddleston. the 
former of whom was a native of Kentucky, the son of William and Susan 
(Phillips) Huddleston. The family were prominent in their community, being 
prosperous slave holders, with a large plantation. Fielding Huddleston came 
to Indiana when he was about thirty years old and located in Hendricks 
county, where he purchased land in the northwestern part of Lincoln town- 
ship. Elizabeth Patterson, mother of Mrs. Elmer B. /\rbuckle, was a daugh- 
ter of Daniel and Sarah (McDaniel) Patterson and the mother of seven 
children. Mr. and Mrs. Arbuckle have two children living and one. Annis 
Hester, died Avhen eight years old. Clarence \/Villiam and Edith Irene are the 
two remaining, both of whom are with the parents. Mr. Arbuckle has 
associated with him his son, now twelve years of age, and, despite his extreme 
youth, the lad shows remarkable intelligence in acquiring information re- 
g'arding the origin, care, etc., of the different classes of high-grade live stock 
on the farm, giving particular attention to the hogs. Mr. Arbuckle makes 
a specialty of spotted Poland China hogs and exhibits at all the state fairs in 
the Central West and East. He comes in contact and competition with the 
very best breeders of this class of live stock and prides himself on the fact 
that he always gets a generous share of the ribbons. He has the distinction 
of being the originator of the improved spotted Poland China breed and was 
instrumental in having a history of the hog written, which proves interesting 
to the layman as well as fancier. In this history the hog was traced to its 
origin and developments and impro\'ements noted from time to time. Mr. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. ^5 

Arbuckle also has a thoroughbred Percheron stalhon but has "0'^^^ him on 
exhibit for about three years. He is also interested ,n P°""^>'- ^^ ' ^ ' -">^ 
fine birds and specializing on single eomb buff Orpmgton^. These he ex 
h bit! at all the big poultry shows of the world and has an env.ab e record 
for his pens. Mr. Arbuckle has attained merited d,st,nct,on m h,s chosen 
1 tf endeavor, due in no sn,all measure to his excellent nsnte^s a . y 
and the untiring energy and unfa.hng determmatton to wm - ■ " ^ ^^ 
today well to the front of those engaged in th.s class of work nd ' " < > 
ing his capable young son, who is in a fa,r way to accomplish stdl greater 

"'"^Mr Arbnckle-s fraternal affiliations are with the Knights of Pythias, the 
Modern' Woodmen of An,erica and the Improved Order of ^ed Men, and nt 
the workings of these various societies he takes an mterest, Whde not a 
m mbe of anv church societv, his syn,pathies are with the Bapt.st church, 
of vhkh Mrs' Arbuckle is an active member. In every avenue ot h es 
a tivit let he has performed his part to the best of his ability, bebevmg that 
anytog worth dotng at all is worth doing well, the result beurg that he has 
wl and retains to a notable degree the sincere respect and con dence of ^ 
who know him. He has a vast number of acqua.ntances, among whom are 
many loyal, stanch and devoted friends, and wherever he goes he rece.ve. a 
hearu- wel ome. His life has been filled with activ.ty and usefulness while 
h sic r interest in the moral and material welfare of the commumty has 
gain d for him a conspicuous place among the leading men of the coun y^ 
Ctte of his high personal character and his genuine worth as a man and a 
citizen, he is specifically entitled to mention m a w.^rk of thi. character. 



WILLIAM N. LAKIN. 



The record of William N. Lakin contains many points ot more than 
ordina V 1 terest. As a mere lad of eighteen he enlisted for service m the 
r ! Wa ai d saw two vears of service. As a public official, he ranks as one 
o the n- ffic "t whi'ch Hendricks county has ever had, while as a private 
d tilen nd business ntan his reputation has been above reproach anc in a 

:.e years which he has '-------:';:: 'zjti::^^ 



826 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

amont^- his fellow citizens which is his today. His life has been one of 
unceasing industry and perseverance and the systematic and honorable 
methods which he has followed have resulted not only in gaining the con- 
fidence of those with whom he has had dealings, but also the building up of 
a large and prosperous business. 

William N. Lakin, the son of William H. and Lucinda (Sargeant) 
Lakin, was born in Shelby county. Illinois, on February 9, 1845. ^'s father 
was born near Cincinnati, Ohio, March 22, 1814, and his mother was a native 
of Virginia, her birth having occurred on September 17, 1816. His grand- 
father, Joseph Lakin, came from Maryland and settled in Indiana, dying in 
Hamilton county in 1838. His wife, Margaret Simmons, died in 1850. The 
maternal grandparents of Mr. Lakin were John and Mary Sargeant, he a 
native of Virginia and she of Kentucky. They moved to Illinois in an early 
day, and there his wife's death occurred in 1821, while he died in 1840. 
Joseph and Margaret (Simmons) Lakin reared a family of fourteen children, 
the father of William N. Lakin being the eleventh child in order of birth. 

William H. Lakin, the father of William N. Lakin, moved from Illinois 
to Boone county, Indiana, in 1846, when the subject of this sketch was about 
one year old, and continued to reside there until 1859, when he permanently 
settled in Hendricks county, at Plainfield. Here he continued in the black- 
smithing business until his death, in 1900, at the advanced age ol eighty-six 
years, his wife having preceded him in death about two years previous, in 
1898. Mr. and Mrs. William H. Lakin were the parents of ten children, 
William N. being the fifth child in order of birth. Five of these children are 
still living in 1913. 

William N. Lakin spent his boyhood days in Boone county, coming to 
Plainfield with his parents in 1859 when he was fifteen years of age. He 
started in as a small boy in his father's blacksmith shop, and before he joined 
the army, at the age of eighteen, he was an expert smith. In 1863 he enlisted 
in Company H, Fifty-fourth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and 
served three months, the term of his enlistment. Immediately after the 
expiration of his three-months service he enlisted in Company A, One Hun- 
dred Seventeenth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry. His second enlist- 
ment was for six months, but he served eight months before he was mustered 
out. During this time he saw service in eastern Tennessee. At the expira- 
tion of his second enlistment in February, 1864, he was mustered out and 
returned to his home, but immediately re-enlisted in the Second Indiana 
Battery of heavy artillery, and was sent with his command to Nashville, 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 827 

Tennessee. He took part in the battle of Nashville and after that performed 
guard duty until the close of the war. Immediately after being mustered 
out of the service he returned to his home county and established a black- 
smith shop in Plainfield, which he conducted until 1868, when he moved to 
Danville, where he continued to follow his trade as a blacksmith for a few 
years, after which he removed to Coatesville, this county, where he opened a 
blacksmith shop and later went into the buggy, implement and harness busi- 
ness, which he still continues. He has been very successful in his line of 
endeavor and has built up a large and lucrative trade in Coatesville and the 
surrounding community. 

Mr. Lakin was married in September, 1867, to Betty J. Cooke, of 
Hamilton county, this state, the daughter of Joshua and Hannah Cooke, and 
she died in 1870, leaving no children. In 1872 Mr. Lakin was married to 
Louisa C. Gamble, the daughter of Mr. and j\Irs. John Gamble, of Coates- 
ville, and to this second marriage there has been born one child, Otto. Mr. 
Lakin has been a life-long Republican and has always taken an active interest 
in local politics. An indication of his popularity and the respect with which 
he is regarded in the county is shown in the fact that he was elected as 
treasurer of Hendricks county in 1898. He filled this responsible position to 
the entire satisfaction of the citizens of the county. He is financially inter- 
ested in the First National Bank, of Coatesville, being a director in that 
institution. Fraternally, he is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, 
the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Grand Army of the Republic. 
He and his wife are consistent members of the Methodist Episcopal church 
at Coatesville. Mr. and Mrs. Lakin are highly respected members of society 
and have a wide circle of friends and acquaintances who esteem them for 
their many good qualities. 

Otto F. Lakin, son of W. N. Lakin, was born in Coatesville, October 
23, 1872, and spent his boyhood in that town. After graduating from the 
Coatesville high school he attended DePauw University for two years, after 
which he was in attendance at a business college at Indianapolis. After spend- 
ing some years in Indianapolis he came to Coatesville in 1894 and worked for 
his father. He then took up the undertaking business and now has a furni- 
ture store in connection with his undertaking establishment. His store is 
stocked with fine, up-to-date furniture, and in all lines of his business he is 
thoroughly modern in his methods and ideas. 

Mr. Lakin was married in 1896 to Maude ]\IcAnich, the daughter of 
S. W. and Agnes McAnich, and to this union there have been born three 
children. Agnes, Russell and Mary Catherine. 



828 HENDRICKS COUNTY. INDIANA. 

Fraternally. Otto Lakin is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, 
in which he has attained the degrees of the Royal Arch chapter; the Inde- 
pendent Order of Odd Fellows, in which he has occupied all the offices in 
the lodge, and holds membership also in the Knights of Pythias. 



DANIEL SIGLER HAZLEWOOD. 

Among the prosperous farmers of Hendricks county, Indiana, who have 
descended from distinguished ancestry is Daniel Sigler Hazlew^ood. His 
grandfather was one of the first pioneers to settle in this county. Daniel S. 
Hazlewood was born September 9. 1873. near Hazlewood. Liberty towaiship, 
Hendricks county, Indiana, his birth occurring in a log cabin on the old home 
farm w^hich w-as erected by his father. His parents w'ere James B. and Jane 
(Stout) Carter Hazlewood. 

James B. Hazlewood w^as also born near Hazlew^ood on August 16. 1837, 
and was the son of Daniel Hazlewood. w-ho was a nati\'e of Virginia, and 
when a young man came to Kentucky, where he married, and soon after 
his marriage he came to Liberty township, this county, wdth his two children, 
James and Benjamin. He entered land from the government and later added 
to his first entry until he was the owner of one hundred and sixty acres of 
good land in the township. He was a skillful mechanic and followed this 
trade at his home and in the town of Hazlewood. He and his family were 
all members of the Missionary Baptist church. Mary Alspaugh. the mother 
of James B. Hazlewood. was a daughter of Isaac Alspaugh. who was a native 
of Kentucky. 

James B. Hazlewood was married in 1865 to Elizabeth Jane (Stout) 
Carter, the daughter of Jonathan and Elizabeth (Ruston) Stout. Jonathan 
Stout was a native of North Carolina and came to this county in an early day 
with his parents. Mr. and Mrs. James Hazlewood were the parents of three 
children: Logan, deceased; Mrs. Addie Kivitt. deceased, and Daniel Sigler. 
wdiose history is here presented. Daniel Hazlewood, the grandfather of 
Daniel Sigler, whose history is here presented, had a family of six children : 
Benjamin; Joseph; James, the father of the subject; Mary, deceased; Jane, 
who died in early youth, and one who died at the age of nine years. James 
Hazlewood spent his boyhood days in this county and his whole life was spent 
on the farm where he was born. He w'as a memlier of the Masonic fraternitA- 
and the Grangers organization which arose in this state in the seventies. 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 829 

He was a life-long Democrat and always took an active part in politics. 
Religiously, he was a member of the Missionary Baptist church at Hazlewood 
and was a clerk in the church for many years. He died in 1897 on the home 
place near Hazlewood. He was a progressive farmer in every sense of the 
word and was a hardworking man all his life. He was a man of liberal 
ideas and always took an acti\e interest in all public enterprises. The town 
of Hazlewood was named after his father, Daniel Hazlewood. 

Daniel Sigler Hazlewood spent his boyhood days in the township schools 
of Liberty township, and at the same time assisted his father on the home 
farm. He has li^'ed his entire life upon the farm where he was born, raising 
all the crops indigenous to this latitude and putting a part of his attention 
to the raising of live stock. Mr. Hazlewood was married on March 22, 
1899, to Cordelia ^laud \\'ooden, the daughter of Robert S. and Cordelia 
Jane (Wilhite) Wooden. 

Robert San ford Wooden, the oldest son of Joshua and Penelope 
W^ooden, was born in Oldham county, Kentuck}', August 4, 1845, ^"^^ '^^^^ 
at his home, three miles west of Hall, Indiana, August 30, 1913, at the age 
of sixty-eight years. He, with his parents, came to Indiana in 185 1, where 
they li^'ed for three years on the Samuel Hadley farm south of Monrovia, 
after which they moved to the old \A'ooden homestead in Adams township, 
Morgan county, where Robert S. grew to manhood. He united with the 
Alethodist Episcopal church at Mount Zion in 1865, and in 1866 went to 
Everett, Cass county, Missouri, where he engaged in teachmg. Four years 
later he returned to Morgan county, Indiana, and taught in Adams, Ashland, 
Gregg and Jefferson townships, that county. Wliile in the West he had 
united with the Christian church, but upon his return home he reclaimed his 
membership with the Methodist Episcopal church at ]Mount Zion and con- 
tinued a faithful member of that congregation until his death. On July 16, 
1871, Mr. Wooden was married to Cordelia \\'ilhite, and to this union were 
born six children, Attie, Leslie. Guy, Aland, Hugh and Charles. On June 5, 
1885, two angels visited their home. One was the angel of life, who brought 
with him the gift of the baby son, Charles, and the other was the angel of 
death, who took their mother home to God. For three years he struggled 
on alone, caring as best he could for the family of little children, and then, 
on January i, 1888, he was married to Sarah Ellen Fisher, thus bringing into 
the home one who has been to the children a devoted mother, counsellor and 
friend, and who has never tired in her efforts to make home what it should be. 
Air. Wooden was a member of the Free and Accepted IMasons and was 



8,30 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

worshipful master of the local lodge at the time of his death. In the fall 
of 1901, Leslie, the oldest son, went west and has not Ijeen heard from since, 
so it is supposed hy the family that he is dead. "Uncle Bob," as he was 
familiarly called, was a friend to everyone, and because of his jolly, loving 
disposition, he was always cheerful, and if he ever had troubles or disappoint- 
ments he never discussed them with his friends. 

Daniel S. Hazlewood is a memlDer of the Free and Accepted Masons at 
Hall, Indiana, and the Improved Order of Red Men at Hazlewood. He is 
also a member of the Order of the Eastern Star and the Pocahontas lodge. 

Mr. and Mrs. Hazlewood are the parents of three children, Gladys, Roy 
and Gene^'a. He and the members of his family are members of the Mission- 
ary Baptist church at Hazlewood and take a zealous interest in all of its 
activities. Mr. Hazlewood is a trustee of the church. Politically, he is a 
Democrat, but has never taken a very active part in the game of politics. 



EARL DUNCAN. 



The men who till the soil are the men who stand at the foundation of 
the prosperity of our country. The profession of farming is one which 
antedates all others, and the only one which can exist independently of any 
other, and for this reason the farmer is the backbone of the nation. It is the 
product of his hands which fills the banks, turns the wheels of the factory and 
directs all the industries of the country. Farming is really the basic industry, 
and he who causes two blades of grass to grow where one formerly grew, is 
performing as useful a mission in life as the man who builds a flying machine, 
constructs a battle ship or digs the Panama canal. 

Earl Duncan, the son of William G. and Matilda (Barnes) Duncan, was 
born in Liberty township, Hendricks county, Indiana, November 11, 1878. 
William G. Duncan was one of the early pioneers of this county, and the 
history of the Duncan family may be considered typical of the history of 
many of the older families of this county, and it may be found elsewhere in 
this volume in the sketch of Charles P. Duncan, a brother of the subject of 
this sketch. 

Earl Duncan spent his boyhood days on the home farm and received a 
good, practical education in the district schools of his home township. 
Marrying at the age of twenty-three, he immediately engaged in farming 
south of Amo, this county, and a year later moved to his father-in-law's farm 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 831 

of one hundred and seventeen acres which he is now managing. In addition 
to raising all the crops of this locality, he makes a specialty of feeding hogs 
for the market, and he has gained the reputation of being one of the best 
hog raisers of the county, this branch of agriculture adding very materially 
to his annual income. He is a progressive farmer and does not hesitate to 
take advantage of the latest developments of machinery and the newest ideas 
in the culture of crops. 

Air. Duncan was married on October 9, 1901, to Ada Reitzel, the daugh- 
ter of George W. and Elizabeth (Norton) Reitzel, and to this marriage have 
been born three sons, Wendell, Russell and Ralph. 

George Washington Reitzel was born August 29, 1847, ^'^ Hendricks 
county, Indiana, and is the son of Daniel and Melvina (Burks) Reitzel. 
Daniel Reitzel was born in North Carolina, and came to Hendricks county, 
Indiana, with his brother, David, and brother-in-law, Joshua Pickett, when 
he was twenty-one years of age. Here Daniel Reitzel entered one hundred 
and sixty acres of land from the government, and two years later sold one 
hundred acres of his farm to Israel Jackson and sixty acres to David Reitzel, 
and he then returned to North Carolina, but shortly afterwards returned to 
this county and bought land in Clay township. Later he went into Hamilton 
county, but again returned to Hendricks county and bought a farm in 
Liberty township. He afterwards sold this and purchased a farm in Clay 
township and in the fall of 1869 went west, where he bought a farm and died 
in 1873. Melvina Burks was born in Kentucky, and came to Putnam county, 
Indiana, with her parents. Mr. and Mrs. Allen Burks, when a babe in arms. 
She died in 1878. Daniel Reitzel helped to build the first Lutheran church 
about one and three-fourths miles south of Pecksburg, this county, which 
was a rude log structure. Mr. Reitzel was very highly respected and esteemed 
in this county. He was twice married, and by his first marriage he had one 
daughter, Rachel Appleby, who lives east of Avon, Indiana. By Mr. Reitzel's 
second marriage there were nine children : Allen, who lives in Pecksburg, 
this county ; George, the father of Mrs. Duncan ; Ambrose, also a resident 
of Pecksburg; William, of Peru, Indiana; John, of Franklin township; Mar- 
cus, of Indianapolis, and three daughters who died in infanc}-. George W. 
Reitzel was married in 1883 to Lizzie Norton, daughter of Thomas and 
Rebecca (Harlan) Nortoh, and her death occurred in 1895. To this mar- 
riage there were born two children, Mrs. Ada Duncan, and Mrs. Hazel 
Patterson, of Hazelwood, Indiana. In 1907 George W. Reitzel was mar- 
ried to Julia Henderson and to this marriage were born two children, Helen 



,':^:^2 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

and William Allen. Mr. Reitzel has been a ])rosperous farmer in the county 
and is now the owner of two hundred and sixty-nine acres of good farming- 
land in Lihertv and Franklin townships. He is a member of the Masonic 
order at Clayton and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows at Monrovia. 
Mr. Reitzel is a Republican in politics and a loyal member of the Lutheran 
church, of which he is now the only trustee. 

Mr. Duncan is a Repul)lican in politics and takes an active interest in 
the affairs of his party. He has been road superintendent for the past six 
years, his last term expiring January' i. 1914. He is a member of the Im- 
proved Order of Red Men at Hazelwood. Mr. and Mrs. Duncan are both 
members of the Christian church at Hazelwood and he has been a trustee of 
the church for the past three years. Mr. Duncan is a man of high ideals, 
straight forw^ard and unassuming, and commands the respect of all with 
whom he comes in contact. 



CHARLES R. REED. 



Among the honorable and intiuential citizens of Hendricks county, Indi- 
ana, is the subject of this review, who has here maintained his home for 
many years, winning a definite success by means of the agricultural industry, 
to which he has devoted his attention during the years of an active business 
life. His career has been without shadow of w-rong or suspicion of evil, 
and thus he has ever commanded the confidence and respect of his fellow 
men. 

Charles R. Reed is a native of the old Hoosier state, having been born 
in Clarion county about two miles south of Clermont, near the Hendricks 
county line, on January 11, i860, -being the son of Thomas J. and Lucy 
(Hamilton) Reed, both of whom were natives of Ohio. Both came to 
Indiana in the early forties with their respective parents, while they were 
still small children. Thomas J. Reed was a son of Jediah and Catherine 
(Negelie) Reed, the former being of Scotch-Irish descent, while the latter 
was of German origin. From her native state of Penns}lvania she came to 
Ohio, where she and Jediah Reed were married. Jediah Reed was a tanner 
and carpenter by trade and after his marriage he came to Indiana and settled 
near Indianapolis, which was at that time but a thriving village. He often 
told of how^ he had hunted on the ground where the Marion county court 
house now stands. After residing in Indianapolis for a time, he removed to 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 833 

near Clermont, where he worked for David McCurdy for several years. He 
then came to Hendricks county, where he operated a tan yard for Thornton 
Gorham in Lincoln township. About 1858 or 1859 he purchased land in 
Lincoln township near Clermont and lived in that vicinity until his death. 
Thomas J. Reed, father of the subject of this sketch, purchased a tract of 
forty acres south of Clermont about i860 or 1861. He later sold that and 
moved to Hamilton county, and it was while residing there that his wife 
(mother of the immediate subject of this sketch) died. After the death of 
his wife, Thomas J. Reed sold his farm in Hamilton county and came back 
to Hendricks county, where he bought forty acres in the southeastern part 
of Brown township and resided in that vicinity until his death. He was 
one of the prominent men of the community in his day, a man much hon- 
ored and respected, and served the township as justice of the peace for a 
great many years. 

Charles R. Reed was one of a family of six children and remained with 
his parents until some fifteen or sixteen years of age, when he secured his 
first work as apprentice to the tile-makers' trade. On August 20, 1885, he 
was united in marriage with Sarah Ettie Ballard. After his marriage, he 
purchased fifty acres of land in the southeastern part of Brown township 
and has resided there ever since. Mrs. Reed was born just across the public 
highway from her present home, on August 28, 1863, being the daughter of 
James and Sarah (Corbly) Ballard, the former from Scott county, Ken- 
tucky, and the latter a native of ALiryland. Both came to Indiana when 
quite young. Sarah Corbly 's oldest brother, Richard by name, enjoyed the 
distinction of being the first white child born in Marion county. After 
Tames B. Reed and Sarah Corbly were married, they entered the one hun- 
dred and sixty acres where Sarah Ettie was born and lived there the re- 
mainder of their lives, rearing an interesting family of thirteen children. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Reed has been born one son, Earl Chester, who mar- 
ried Elo Erie Smith, daughter of Henry and AUie (Hilton) Smith. Earl 
Chester Reed lives about one-half mile north of Tilden, Indiana, on a farm 
belonging to his father-in-law. He entered Wabash College, but was forced 
to abandon his idea of completing his course, owing to ill health. He has 
one child, Reuel Irvin. 

While Mr. Reed is not a member of any church, he is interested in the 
Christian church, of which his wife and son are both members and are deeply 
interested in the affairs of that society. Eraternally, Mr. Reed is a member 
of the time-honored body of Eree and Accepted Masons, and both he and his 

(53) 



834 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



wife are members of the Order of the Eastern Star. His career thus far has 
been a consistent and honorable one and, because of his stanch integrity and 
his accompHshments, he is entitled to hold the sincere confidence and good 
will of all who know him. He has been one of those solid men of brain and 
substance so essential to the material growth and prosperity of a community 
and whose influence has been willingly extended in behalf of every deserving 
enterprise that has for its object the advancement of the moral or material 
welfare of the communitv. 



JOHN RAYMOND MILES. 

Hendricks county is able to boast of many old and prominent families, 
men and women whose ancestors for several generations have written their 
names upon the pages of the history of the county. Among these, the names 
of Miles and Brady are well known, and in our present article we wish to 
speak of both. 

John Raymond Miles, one of the prominent young farmers of the local- 
ity, first saw the light of day upon the farm where he now resides, a trifle 
less than two miles northeast of Clayton, on the 21st day of May, 1883. 
He is the son of Thomas J. Miles, a prominent and influential farmer of 
this locality. This gentleman, of whom we have spoken elsewhere in this 
volume, was born in 1842 near Belleville, a son of John and Martha Miles. 
Here he spent his youth and received his schooling, and here, later, he met and 
married Tabitha Tudor, whose birth occurred in Morgan county, in 1852. 

The immediate suljject of this article, John Raymond Miles, spent his 
childhood and youth upon the homestead. farm, receiving his schooling in the 
township schools, and as he grew to manhood and assisted his father with 
the various activities of the place, he was taught the best agricultural methods 
of the time, and to this wise training his present success is largely due. ■ 

In the year 1905 was solemnized Mr. Miles' marriage to Lela Brady, 
whose birth also occurred in Hendricks county. In fact her ancestry dates 
back to many generations of Hendricks county citizens. Her parents, Wesley 
and Catherine (Riggins) Brady, were also born in Center township, and 
here, after their marriage, their homestead was established. Mr. Brady was 
a most successful farmer, aggressive and intelligent, but his greatest business 
successes have been in the breeding and sale of fine live stock, in which 
department he is an authority. In the year 1904 he disposed of his farm and 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 835 

moved into Danville, engaging there in the livery business and dealing largely 
in fine horses. 

Mrs. Miles remained in the home of her parents until her marriage, 
receiving her schooling in the neighboring schools, but when, in 1905, she 
was married to Mr. Miles, the young people established their home in Clayton 
and for two years they resided here while Mr. Miles continued his agricultural, 
pursuits upon the farm of his father, the homestead where he was born. As 
time elapsed, however, it seemed advisable for the young people to take up 
their abode also upon the farm, and here they have remained. Mr. Miles 
is now the owner of this beautiful estate, iiicluding three hundred and ninety 
acres of land. A successful farmer he has proven, combining industry and 
energy with modern methods and sound judgment, and, although a young- 
man, he is already widely known and highly esteemed as a successful business 
man and also for his sterling qualities. A little daughter. May Geraldine, 
came to bless their home on the 5th day of January, 1906, and is now her 
mother's able assistant. Their home is noted for its genial hospitality, and 
the charming social graces of the hostess and the warmth of welcome ex- 
tended by the host have endeared the family and their home to the many 
friends who surround them. 



WILLIAM BAXTER VESTAL. 

The gentleman of whom this chronicle speaks is one of the honored 
pioneers of Hendricks county, Indiana, and for over a half century he has 
been a valued factor in the development of the same, prominently identified 
with the varied interests of his community. His well-directed energies in 
the practical affairs of life, his capable management of his own business 
interests and his sound judgment have demonstrated what may be accom- 
plished by the man of energy and ambition, who, persevering often in the face 
of seemingly insurmountable obstacles, proves that he is the possessor of those 
innate qualities that never fail to bring success if properly directed, as thev 
have evidently been in the case of Mr. Vestal. 

William Baxter Vestal, a son of Gabin and Catherine (Richards) 
Vestal, was born in Guilford township, this county, October 29, 1849. The 
early education of Mr. Vestal was received in the suliscription schools of his 
township of that day and when a young man of twenty he went to Indian- 
apolis and took employment with the George Merritt Company, manufac- 



S36 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 



turers of woolens, with which linn he remained for twenty-fivfe years, being 
adxanced from time to time to positions of additional responsibility until, 
when he left there in 1894, he was the general manager of the company. In 
the latter vear he purchased a farm of one hundred and sixty acres in Guil- 
ford township, this county, on which he has been living for the past twenty 
years. 

Mr. \>stal was married ^larch 12, 1874, to Emma ]McCall, the daugh- 
ter of James and Susan ]\IcCall. of Lancaster. Ohio. Her father was a 
carriage maker of that place. Her mother is a second cousin of Gen. \\"illiam 
T. Sherman of Civil-war fame. ]^Irs. Vestal was one of six children born 
to her parents, and Mr. and ]\.Irs. \'estal have a family of four children: 
Frank J., of Anderson. Indiana, is now chief engineer of the Union Traction 
Company; he married Esther Aloore. the daughter of John S. Aloore. of 
Plaintield. He was born October 5. 1875. and was educated in the academy at 
the latter place. He and his wife are the parents of one daughter, born in 
June, 1903. Catherine May. born April 2. 1878, is the wife of Halstead 
H. Mills, of Detroit, ^Michigan, who is a boiler inspector for the Hartford 
Insurance Company, and they have two children, Jeannette, born November 
2=), 1906. and Georgia B., born February 4, 1909. Georgia Emma, born 
August 24. 1 88 1, is the wife of \\'ilbur Sherfy, of Billings, Montana, a civil 
engineer, a graduate of Purdue University, and now in the employ of the 
United States reclamation service. \Mlliam Baxter, Jr., the youngest one of 
the children, was born September 13. 1887, ^^"d received his education at the 
Montana State College. He is now the assistant engineer of the city of Boze- 
man, Montana, and has charge of the special train which makes an annual 
tour through the state of ?vIontana, advertising his city. 

^Ir. and Mrs. Vestal are both consistent and faithful members of the 
Methodist Episcopal church of Bridgeport, and contribute liberally of their 
substance to its support. In his fraternal relations Mr. Vestal is a member 
of the blue lodge, council and chapter of Masons, and also holds membership 
in the Knights of Pythias. Mr. Vestal has always been a Republican in 
politics and has been very active in the councils of his party, and in 1901 he 
was elected to the lower house of the Legislature from Hendricks county and 
served in that law-making body with distinction to himself and satisfaction 
to his constituents. The Legislature passed a law organizing advisory boards 
in each township in the state, and Mr. X^estal became the chairman of the first 
advisory board of his home township. In fact, he has always been interested 
in the public welfare of his community and has never forgotten the obliga- 



HENDRICKS COUXTY, INDIANA. 837 

tions which he owes to the pubhc. His support of such measures and move- 
ments which make for the general good can always be depended upon and he 
is, in the full sense of the term, a representative and self-made American 
and thoroughly in harmony with the spirit of the advanced age in which he 
lives. He has not permitted the accumulation of wealth to afifect in any wav 
his actions toward those less fortunate than he. 



CHARLES W. MILLS. 



Among the men of Hendricks county who have wandered far from their 
native heath and won success in foreign fields is Charles W. Wills. \\'hen a 
young man he enlisted in the regular army and for three years was under the 
command of the President of the United States. He was shifted hither and 
thither over the extensive territory of our nation from Puerto Rico to the 
far Philippines on the west. During all of his service he conducted himself 
as a genuine American soldier and upon the expiration of his enlistment he 
became a general contractor of Indianapolis. Still later he engaged in the 
manufacture of automobiles, but the call of the farm was not to be disobeved 
and several years ago he moved onto the old homestead farm, where he is now 
living the life of the plain and unostentatious farmer. 

Charles W. Mills, one of the distinguished sons of Hendricks countv. was 
born in Guilford township, October 24. 1870. His parents were \\'illiam P. 
and Olive (Alattem) ]^Iills. his father being born in Ohio September 17. 1846. 
William P. Mills came to Indiana when a youth with his parents and settled in 
Guilford township, and on the home farm which his father left him he lived 
all of his life until he retired at Plainfield a few years ago. with the exception 
of a few years when he was in the general merchandise business at W>st 
Newton, Marion county. The wife of William P. ^lills was born at Bridge- 
port in Marion county in 1849. Her ancestors came from Pennsylvania and 
Ohio respectively. Her father was a blacksmith by trade and died in 1893, her 
mother having passed away in February, 1873. ]Mr. and ]^Irs. William P. 
Mills were the parents of three children: Charles W.. whose career is herein 
presented to the reader: Pearl C. born March 10. 1876, and a widow of Elbin 
C. Hadley : Henry Halstead. born October 26. 1880, who is at present a boiler 
inspector for the Hartford Insurance Company of Detroit. Henrv married 
Catherine ^"'estal. of Plainfield. and has two children. Jeanette and Georgia. 

Mr. ^lills received his education in the common schools of Guilford town- 



8^8 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

ship and later graduated from the academy at Plainfield. He then took a 
complete course in the Inchanapohs Business Cohege, after which lie enlisted 
for three years as a soldier in the United States regular army. After his 
enlistment had expired he settled in Indianapolis, where he went into the con- 
tracting and building business for a number of years, after which he disposed 
of his business and entered into the automobile manufacturing business and 
continued at that for seven years in Indianapolis. Upon his father's retire- 
ment from the farm, he took charge of the old home place and has been no less 
successful in the farming profession than he was as a manufacturer and con- 
tractor. In the time he has been on the old home place he has impro\-ed it in 
various ways and is rapidly bringing the farm to a higher state of productivity. 

Mr. Mills was married October 12, 1902. to Levada O'Mullane, of Owen 
county, Indiana, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. James O'Mullane. To Mr. 
and Mrs. Mills have been born five children, all of whom are still at home: 
Dorothv Pearl, Charles Julian, Beverly O'Mullane. Max Owen and Sherman 
Eugene. 

Mr. Mills and his family are members of the Methodist Episcopal church 
at Bridgeport. He lent his support to the Democratic party and is in hearty 
svmpathy with the Bryan-Wilson movement in Indiana at the present time. 
Mr. Mills' life has been one of action and persistence and the systematic and 
honorable methods which he has followed have resulted in not only gaining 
the confidence of those with whom he has had dealings, but also in elevating 
him in the esteem of his fellowmen. He is a man of pleasing address and is 
noted for his hospitality and kindliness. 



ELI H. ANDERSON. 

The agricultural interests of Guilford township, Hendricks county, have 
an able representative in Eli H. Anderson, a man who has succeeded in his 
chosen life work because he has worked persistently along such lines as cannot 
well fail in Ijringing success. He never lets the grass grow under his feet. 
but is always busy, and he believes in doing well whatever he attempts ; thus. 
by having system in all his work, he has forged to the front and is in every way 
deserving of the respect in which he is held by all who know him. 

Eli H. Anderson, one of the most extensive land holders of Hendricks 
county, was born March 18, 1865. in the town of A/Iooresville. His parents 
were Thomas C. and Anna (White) Anderson, his father being a native 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. " ^39 



of Ohio and h>s mother of Wayne county, Indiana. Thomas Anderson a 
farmer and brick „,ason. came to Hendricks county before the war and settled 
in Washington township, where he bought a quarter of a section of land 
After three years' residence on this farm, he moved to Six Points m this 
county, where he farmed for the next nine years. The remamder of h>s hfe 
was spent in Iroquois county, Illinois, where he died in 1873. h.s w.fe dymg 
Sentember '4. 1898. To Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Anderson were born tour 
children, only two of whom are living, Benjamin W., whose history is 
set forth in this volume, and Eli H. . ., 1 

Eli H Anderson is proud of the fact that he was born in a rude log 
cabin in the midst of a little clearing which his father had made on their 
farm In this little cabin, surrounded by very primitive conditions he and 
his brothers and sisters grew up. Their parents were ambitious for their 
children and gave then, the best schooling which the "-8 »*°° ^f -^/^ ' 
Hard work was the portion that was deeded out to the children of the And r- 
son family and what they profited by this is shown m the -ccess ha to 
attended the two living children, Eli and Benjamin. The whole life o Eh 
H Anderson has been spent upon the farm and there is no feature ot farming 
life that he does not thoroughly understand ; he has made it his life study, and 
now, in the present day when the teaching of agriculture is becoming general 
Zughout Ihe country, it seems that farming is to be raised to the dignity 

°^ "" Mr 'Xderson was married February 27, igo". to Liu:ille Nyse- 
wander,' daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Jasper Nysewander Mrs Ander- 
son wa; born near Plainfield and is one of a family of eight children, both 
of her parents being deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Anderson have two sons, 
Benjani n Rufus, born September 2, .903. and Clifford Eh, born March 9. 
,00 Mr Anderson is a member of the Knights of Pythias and is inter- 
ested in the activities of the lodge. He lends his strong support to the 
Republican partv. Religiously, he is a member of the Friends church, and 
may alwavs be found in hearty co-operation with those who are advancing 
the welfa;e of his community. Mr. Anderson has been a ife-long farmer 
and has been living on his present farm of four hundred and forty acres tor 
the past fourteen years, where he does general farming which is peculiar 
,0 this locality. He has made a specialty of stock raising and finds^ this a 
valuable addition to his yearly income from the fariu. In all the relations of 
life he has proved a man among men and because ot his sterling qualities 
and stanch integrity he is well deserving of the confidence which has been 
placed in him by his fellow citizens. 



840 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

JOHN L. PORTWOOD. 

Agriculture has been an honored vocation from the earHest ages and, 
as a usual thing, men of honorable and humane impulses, as well as those of 
energy and thrift, have been patrons of husbandry. The free, outdoor life of 
the farm has a tendency to foster and develop that independence of mind and 
self-reliance which characterize true manhood and no greater blessing can 
befall a boy than to be reared in close touch with nature in the healthful, life- 
inspiring labor of the fields. It has always been the fruitful soil from which 
ha\e sprung the moral bone and sinew of the country, and the majority of 
our nation's scholars and distinguished man of letters were born on the farm 
and are indebted to its early influence for the distinction which they have 
attained. 

John L. Portwood was born in Estill county, Kentucky, on January 17, 
1867, the son of Leonard and Martha (Portwood) Portwood, both of whom 
were natives of that' state. Martha Portwood was a daughter of Joseph and 
Susan (Gentry) Portwood. The family were slave holders, as were most 
Kentuckians of that day who were at all blessed with this world's goods. 
Leonard Portwood, father of the immediate subject of this sketch, was also 
an owner of slaves, having three at the time of the opening of the late re- 
bellion. John L. Portwood was a child of but twenty-two months of age 
when his father, Leonard, departed this life, and the widow continued to 
operate the plantation with the assistance of her older sons. The subject lived 
with his mother until the time of his marriage, when he came to Indiana, 
locating in Hendricks county, where he engaged in agricultural work, hiring 
out by the month to farmers in the community. He continued in this way 
for four years, saving as best he could and at that time he was able to pur- 
chase one acre of ground about a mile and a half east of Brownsburg. He 
put this acre into an excellent state of cultivation, raising small garden truck 
thereon and also rented a larger tract of land close by. where he carried on 
general farming. He was in a way to prosper and at the end of four years 
had earned and saved sufficient money to purchase forty acres of land, 
located something over two miles northeast of Brownsburg. There he lived 
for two years, when he sold it and bought a forty-acre tract four miles 
northeast of Danville. There he lived for two years, and in 1906 sold it and 
purchased the seventy acres where he now resides, some three miles north 
of Brownsburg. Mr. Portwood has never specialized on any particular line 
of crops or stock, simply carrying on general farming, but this he has made 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 84I 

pay him well, owing to his unfailing energy, untiring effort and excellent 
business ability. In his youth he received but a limited education, but has 
endeavored to overcome this handicap in e\-ery possible way and has won 
out through his pluck and determination. W'hen Mr. Portwood arrived in 
Brownsburg from Kentucky he had but fifty cents in his pocket and through 
his own judicious management and effort he has made for himself his com- 
fortable home and well cultivated acres. 

In 1894 Mr. Portwood was united in marriage with Rhoda Richardson, 
who was born December lo, 1877, the daughter of Basil and Amy (Thomp- 
son) Richardson. All were natives of Kentucky. Amy Thompson was a 
daughter of Jesse and Elizabeth (Riddle) Thompson and Basil Richardson 
was a son of David and Polly (White) Richardson. To the subject and 
wife ha^'e been born nine children, namely: Avery L., John, Nora, Bertha, 
Chester. Herman, Hazel, Martha and Lucile, all of whom are with the par- 
ents. The family is highly respected and considered among the leading citi- 
zens of the community. Both Mr. and Mrs. Thompson are members of the 
Christian church and give of time and means to further the cause of that 
society in their community. Mr. Portwood is a man whom to know is to 
admire, for he has led a most exemplary life and has sought to do his duty 
in all relations with his fellow men, being a man of honor, unswerving in- 
tegrity and enterprise, consequently he is eminently deserving of mention in 
a history of his county, along with other well-known and representative 
citizens. 



JOHN HADLEY ALMOND. 

The present age is essentially utilitarian and the life of every successful 
man carries a lesson which, told in contemporary narrative, is productive of 
much good in shaping the destiny of others. There is, therefore, a due 
measure of satisfaction in presenting, even in brief resume, the life and 
achievements of such men, and in preparing the following history of the 
progressive farmer and dairyman whose name appears above, it is with the 
hope that it may prove not only interesting and instructive, but also serve as 
an incentive to those who contemplate making agriculture their life work. 

John Hadley Almond, the son of Pleasant and Minerva J. (Hadley) 
Almond, was born near Plainfield, Indiana, October 12, 1865. His parents 
were both natives of Hendricks county, his father dying December 10. 1907, 



842 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

on the farm which he bought in 1857; his wife died on the old home farm 
on October 26, 1873. Mr. and Mrs. Pleasant Almond were the parents of 
four children: Theophihis. wh(^ died in April, 1893; Roscoe ; John Hadley; 
and Sarah C, who died Octolier 8, J873. 

John H. Almond received his education in the district schools and com- 
pleted his course in the Plainfield Academy. Until his marriage he worked 
on his father's farm and immediately after his marriage he went onto a farm 
of his own, where he has continued with uniform success up to the present/ 
time as a farmer and stock raiser. Though he has not neglected his general 
farming, he has paid special attention to his live stock business. At present 
he is conducting an extensive dairy and has had remarkable success in this 
line of business. 

Mr. Almond was married ]\Iarch 13, 1889, to Emma J. Hadley, of 
Morgan county, the daughter of Zimri and Luretha Hadley, and to their 
union have been born four children: Luretha M., born February 28. 1892, 
and died August 27, 1913; Eliza O., born June 10, 1895; Laura L., born 
April 21, 1896; Earl C. born September 23, 1898. Eliza and Laura have 
both graduated from the Central Academy and the youngest child is now in 
the academy. Mr. and Mrs. Almond are giving their children the advan- 
tages of an education and have assisted them in every way to prepare them- 
selves for their teacher's career. 

Mr. Almond has been a stanch supporter of the Republican ticket and 
has taken a part in the local conventions of his party, although he has never 
been a candidate for any office at the hands of his party. He and the rest 
of his family are loyal members of the Friends church and are interested in 
all of the activities of that denomination. Mr. Almond is one of those men 
who has a splendid personality and has always been an energetic and enter- 
prising citizen who has attained a definite success because he worked for it. 
For this reason he justly merits the respect and esteem which has been so 
willingly accorded him by his fellow citizens. 



COL. JOHN T. BARNETT. 

There is one profession which has enrolled very few men from Hen- 
dricks county and that is the military service of the United States. Col. John 
T. Barnett was the first man of the county to graduate from West Point 
Military Academy, and the second man from the county to command a regi- 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 843 

nient during a war. He has had a long and varied career in the service of 
his country, and since his retirement, on account of disability, he has been 
no less active in civil life. 

Col. John T. Barnett, who is now living at No. 2001 North Delaware 
street, Indianapolis, Indiana, was born three miles west of Danville, Septem- 
ber 2, 1 85 1, on the same farm which his father entered from the govern- 
ment. His parents were William and Nancy (Buchanan) Barnett. His 
father was a native of Fluvanna county, old Virginia. William Barnett, with 
his parents, came west and settled in Shelby county, Kentucky, in 1808. 
About 1832 William Barnett came to Hendricks county, Indiana, and bought 
and settled on the farm where he li\ed the rest of his life. 

Nancy Buchanan Barnett was a direct descendant of the famous Scottish 
scholar, historian and poet, George Buchanan, of the Scottish clan of 
Buchanan. Her grandfather, Alexander Buchanan, came direct from Scot- 
land to this country about 1760. She was born and raised near Versailles in 
Woodford county, Kentucky. With her father she came to Hendricks 
county, Indiana, as a young woman and settled near old Belleville. She was 
united in marriage to William Barnett about 1840. 

William and Nancy Barnett were prominent and active members of the 
Missionary Baptist church throughout their lives, he being clerk of the church 
from the time he came to Hendricks county till his death. He died in 1875, 
at the age of seventy-one years. His widow, Nancy Barnett, lived on said 
farm till her death in 1899 in the seventy-ninth year of her life. 

To William and Nancy Barnett were born seven children, five of whom 
are still living: Levi A. Barnett, of Danville, Indiana; Mrs. Harriet Ellen 
AIcKitrick, of Indianapolis, Indiana ; Dr. Eli S. Barnett, of Salt Lake City, 
Utah ; Mrs. Nancy A. Whatley, whose hus1:)and is an eminent physician of 
Parral, old Mexico: and Col. John T. Barnett, the immediate subject of this 
sketch. 

Col. John T. Barnett received his early education in the district schools 
of his township and the old Danville Academy. After teaching school about 
one vear he entered Asbury (De Pauw) University in the fall of 1871, and 
he completed the freshman year with the class of 1875. Receiving an appoint- 
ment to the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, upon 
the recommendation of Gen. John Coburn, the then congressman, he entered 
said academy in June, 1873. He graduated from the Military Academy in 
June, 1878, number fourteen in his class. He stood specially well in his class in 
mathematics and allied subjects. Colonel Barnett was obliged to remain out 



844 HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 

of the academy one year on account of severe illness from typhoid fever. 
He was assigned to the Fifth United States Cavalry as second lieutenant 
United States Army. 

After the customary graduating leave of absence, he joined the Fifth 
United States Cavalry October i, 1878, at Fort D. A. Russell, near Cheyenne. 
Wyoming. He was in active ser\'ice during the next eight years, and served 
at various posts with his regiment and on detached duty in Wyoming and 
Texas. In 1886, he was compelled to retire from active service on account 
of disability incurred in line of duty, since which time he has been on the re- 
tired list of the United States Army. x\fter his retirement he settled 
in Danville for awhile, but his health still remained very precarious. He 
suffered from nervous prostration, and spinal anemia which was largely 
brought on by mountain fever and the high altitude in which he served dur- 
ing his active service. 

In 1893 Colonel Barnett moved to Indianapolis and settled on Meridian 
street, where he lived for about one year. Flis health having somewhat im- 
proved, he removed to Pi((ua, Ohio, in the spring of 1894 and engaged in the 
hardware business. He became principal owner, president and manager of 
the Barnett Hardware Company at Piqua and remained as such till 1899, 
when he disposed of his interests and returned to Indianapolis, where he now 
lives at the corner of Twentieth and Delaware streets. Upon his return to 
Indianapolis he engaged in the manufacturing pharmaceutical business for a 
short time till a return of his old disease caused him to give it up. When he 
again became improved in health he engaged in his present real estate, loan 
and insurance business. His office is now at No. 50 North Delaware street, 
Indianapolis. 

In 1893 Colonel Barnett was appointed by Governor Matthews, assistant 
inspector general of the Indiana National Guard, with the rank of major, 
which position he held till about 1895, ^vhen he resigned on account of ab- 
sence from the state. At the beginning of the Spanish-American war. 
Colonel Barnett offered his services to the secretary of war and to the 
governors of Ohio and Indiana. 

The Governor of Indiana availed himself of his valuable services and he 
was appointed colonel and commander of the One Hundred and Fiftv-ninth 
Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry in May, 1898, and he at once took his 
regiment to Camp Alger, Virginia. The regiment was stationed at Camp 
Alger, Thoroughfare Gap, Virginia, Camp Meade, Pennsylvania, and was 
mustered out of the service at Camp Mount, Indianapolis, about the middle 



ir^f r\ c\ t^ jj^ M^ 



HENDRICKS COUNTY, INDIANA. 845 

of November, 1898. While at Camp Alger, Colonel Barnett commanded 
the Second Division of the Second Army Corps for a short time, and his 
brigade for about one-half of the time he was in the service. 

On the i8th of December, 1879, Colonel Barnett was married to Emma 
Charlotte Peirsol, the only daughter of Isaac and Elizabeth J. Peirsol, a 
prominent family of Hendricks county, Isaac Peirsol being a successful mer- 
chant and banker of Danville. To Colonel and Emma C. Barnett two chil- 
dren were born: \Mlliam P., who died at birth, February 14, 1881, and 
Chester P., born January 14, 1887. Emma C. Barnett died in May, 1892. 
and in the following" year Colonel Barnett married Cora C. Campbell, the 
daughter of L. AI. Campbell, a pronu'nent lawyer of Danville. Ind. No chil- 
dren were born of this second marriage. 

Chester P. Barnett, the only child of Colonel Barnett, graduated from 
^Manual Training high school at Indianapolis and immediately entered West 
Point Military Academy, from which he graduated in 1910. He was attached 
to the Fifteenth United States Cavalry and stationed at Fort Meyer, Virginia, 
until September, 19 13, when he was transferred with his regiment to Fort 
Bliss, Texas. He is now in the midst of the stirring events which are taking 
place there every day. Chester was married, in June, 191T, to Katherine 
Davis Brown, the granddaughter of ex-Senator Henry Gassaway Davis, of 
West Virginia, and to this happy union there has been born one son, Davis 
Peirsol Barnett. Colonel Barnett can be justly proud of the fine record his 
son is now making. Chester P. Barnett has an estate in Hendricks county 
valued at sixty thousand dollars. 

Colonel Barnett was a member of the Sigma Chi Greek-letter fraternity 
while in DePauw University and is a member of the alumni chapter at Indi- 
anapolis, being president of the same for one year. He is a member of the 
Sons of the Revolution and served as its president, and has been on its board 
of managers since 1899. He has always been interested in Masonry and 
has belonged to the fraternity since he was twenty-one years of age. As a 
member of the Chamber of Commerce, he is chairman of its militarv com- 
mittee. He is a member of the Military Order of Foreign Wars, Spanish 
War Veterans, and Spanish War Camp, of all of which he has been com- 
mander. In politics the Colonel has always been identified with the Demo- 
cratic party and is a member of the Indiana Democratic Club. He is a mem- 
ber of the Christian church and contributes to its support. Colonel Barnett 
has led a very busy and useful career and has made a name for himself in 
his profession. 



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